The Confederation of African Football (CAF) World Cup playoffs kick off on Thursday, featuring Cameroon, Gabon, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The four nations will battle for a single spot at the FIFA Intercontinental Playoff Tournament in March — the final gateway to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.
These teams finished as the best runners-up from Africa’s nine qualifying groups, and the playoff champion will have the chance to become the 10th African representative at next year’s World Cup finals.
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Venue
All matches will be played in Rabat, Morocco, across three stadiums:
Al Barid Stadium – Semifinal venue
Moulay El Hassan Stadium – Semifinal venue
Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium – Host of the final and the upcoming AFCON 2025 final on January 18
Match Schedule
Semifinals (Thursday, November 13):
Nigeria vs Gabon – 5:00 PM local time (16:00 GMT) at Moulay El Hassan Stadium
Cameroon vs DR Congo – 8:00 PM local time (19:00 GMT) at Al Barid Stadium
Final (Sunday, November 16):
Winner of Semifinal 1 vs Winner of Semifinal 2
8:00 PM local time (19:00 GMT) at Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium
How the Draw Was Done
The semifinal pairings were determined using the FIFA World Rankings released on October 17:
1. Nigeria – Rank #41
2. Cameroon – Rank #54
3. DR Congo – Rank #60
4. Gabon – Rank #77
 playoffs kick off on Thursday, featuring Cameroon, Gabon, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.){kind=link}