A BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF THE 2023 AFCON GROUP QUALIFICATION STAGE DRAWS

The qualifier matches for the 2023 African Cup of Nations, AFCON, Championships will kick off across the Continent on 14th June 2022

The draw was superintended over by the Confederation of African Football director of competitions, Samson Adamu, while South African football maestro, Lucas Radebe, and former Cote d’Ivoire international, Salomon Kalou participated in the elaborate program.

The elaborate draws event for the group stage was held at Super Sports Studio in Johannesburg, South – Africa. Below are contenders in each of the twelve groups and conjectures on who will top each of the groups have begun and it’s also legal.

Here are the 12 groups and the teams they comprise;

GROUP A: Three times winners, Super Eagles of Nigeria, will play against Leone Stars of Sierra Leone, African Wide Dogs of Guinea – Bissau and the Green Yellows of Sao Tome and Principe in the African Cup of Nations qualification matches for the 2023 AFCON Championships.

This was disclosed at an elaborate draw for the group stage held at Super Sports Studio in Johannesburg, South – Africa.

GROUP B: Is made up of 2013 runners–up, the Stallions of Burkina Faso who will slug it out with the Blue Sharks of Cape Verde, Sparrows hawks of Togo and King’s Shield of Eswatini.

GROUP C: Seven times winners, the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, Harambe Stars of Kenya, Brave Warriors of Namibia and the Swallows of Burundi will be slugging it out.

GROUP D: The most successful team in the history of the competition, 2022 runners – up and seven times winners, the Pharaohs of Egypt, will play alongside Syli Stars of Guinea, Flames of Malawi and the 1962 Winners, Walyas of Ethiopia contend for supremacy.

Group E: Four times winners, the Black Stars of Ghana will play against the Red Island of Madagascar, Palanca Negras of Angola and the Wild Beasts of Central African Republic.

Group F: Parades two times winners, Desert Foxes of Algeria, Cranes of Uganda, the Mena of Niger and Taifa Stars of Tanzania.

Group G: This group’s battles will be between the 1972 runners–up, the Eagles of Mali, Red Devils of Congo, Scorpions of the Gambia and South Sudan

GROUP H: Consists of the 2023 AFCON host and two-time winners, Elephants of Cote D’Ivoire who won the competition in 1992 and 2015. The Cote D’Ivoire team will confront 2012 Winners, Copper Bullets of Zambia, Comoros and the Crocodiles of Lesotho.

GROUP I: Features three times winners, Leopards of Democratic Republic DR of Congo, Panthers of Gabon, the Almoravids of Mauritania and 1959 and 1963 runners–up, the Nile Crocodiles of Sudan

Group J: Will play host to 2004 winners, Carthage Eagles of Tunisia who will take on Thunders of Equatorial-Guinea, the Mediterranean Knights of Libya and the Zebra of Botswana.

GROUP K: Features the 1976 winners, Atlas Lions of Morocco who will be confronting 1996 winners, Bafana Bafana of South – Africa, Libya and the Warriors of Zimbabwe.

In GROUP L; Defending Champions, Teranga Lions of Senegal will battle the Squirrels of Benin Republic while the Mambas of Mozambique and The Wasps of Rwanda will contend for qualification.

The 48 teams that qualified for the second round of the qualifiers were drawn into twelve groups of four teams which will play against each other and the two best teams will qualify for Cote D’Ivoire Tournaments.

The qualifier matches for the 2023 AFCON Championships will kick off across the Continent on 14th June 2022.

Sports story written by Sports Correspondent OMOKAYODE MUSE