Africa’s road to its biggest football tournament goes quiet until Wednesday, 11 November 2026, when the qualifiers restart. Our AFCON 2027 qualifiers hub tracks the Africa Cup of Nations, the continent’s national-team championship, as the field of 48 teams heads into the middle two rounds.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF), the body that runs the competition, set 9 to 17 November for the next international window. For readers in the United States, Matchday 3 means a daytime kick-off.
This story is part of our coverage of the AFCON 2027 qualifiers. Dates, times and how to follow it are in our guide.
Key Facts
- Next round: Matchday 3, Wednesday, 11 November 2026, first kick-off 17:00 UTC (12:00 p.m. Eastern, 9:00 a.m. Pacific).
- After that: Matchday 4 on Sunday, 15 November; no single kick-off time is confirmed.
- Format: 48 teams in 12 groups of four, six matches each, 24 places at the finals.
- Prediction markets: Nigeria 54.5% and Guinea-Bissau 41.2% to win Group L (Polymarket, as of 12:22 p.m. ET, 29 October 2026).
When The Qualifiers Return
Matchday 3 is listed for Wednesday, 11 November, with all 24 fixtures sharing a first kick-off of 17:00 UTC. That is 12:00 p.m. Eastern, 11:00 a.m. Central, 10:00 a.m. Mountain and 9:00 a.m. Pacific, because US daylight saving time ends on 1 November.
Matchday 4 follows on Sunday, 15 November. A “matchday” is one round in which every group plays two games.
The kick-off times come from a fixture list published by a sports-news site, not from CAF. Individual times and venues may still change, so check each match closer to the date.
How Qualification Works
The 48 teams are split into 12 groups of four, and each team plays six matches, three at home and three away. The campaign runs across three international windows, the FIFA-agreed breaks when clubs must release players, between September 2026 and March 2027.
Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are co-hosts of the finals and qualify automatically. In the nine groups without a host, the top two teams go through, for 18 places.
In the three groups that contain a host, only the best-placed non-host team qualifies. The final qualifying window, Matchdays 5 and 6, is set for 22 to 30 March 2027.
Why Group L Is The One To Watch
Nigeria lost 3–0 away to Guinea-Bissau in Bissau on Tuesday, 29 September. That put Guinea-Bissau top of Group L on six points after two games, with Nigeria second on three.
Tanzania, a co-host, sit in the same group. That leaves a single place for Nigeria, Guinea-Bissau and Madagascar to contest.
Elsewhere, Egypt beat South Sudan 5–0, South Africa beat Eritrea 5–0, Morocco beat Lesotho 2–0 and DR Congo beat Zimbabwe 2–1. No Matchday 3 or 4 results exist yet.
What Prediction Markets Say
Polymarket, a platform where users trade on the outcome of events, lists a Group L winner market with US$13,182 traded as of 12:22 p.m. ET on 29 October 2026. Its prices read as implied probabilities.
- Nigeria: 54.5%
- Guinea-Bissau: 41.2%
- Madagascar: 4.0%
- Tanzania: 3.8%
These prices are bets, not polls, and the volume is small. Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
The Finals Come To East Africa
The tournament itself runs from 19 June to 17 July 2027 in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. It is the first time East Africa has hosted since Ethiopia in 1976.
The qualifiers decide which 21 non-host teams join the three hosts.
What It Means For US Readers
The 17:00 UTC start puts Matchday 3 in the late morning on the East Coast and early morning on the West Coast. Those who follow Nigeria, Egypt or Morocco can plan around that window.
The Group L market gives a quick read on how traders see Nigeria’s chances of recovering from the Bissau defeat.
What Is Not Known
CAF has not published a consolidated venue list or confirmed match-specific kick-off times for Matchdays 3 and 4. No broadcaster for US viewers has been confirmed in the sources we reviewed.
Updated standings after the next round will show whether the picture in Group L has changed.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do the AFCON 2027 qualifiers resume?
The next window runs from 9 to 17 November 2026. Matchday 3 is listed for Wednesday, 11 November, and Matchday 4 for Sunday, 15 November.
What time do the 11 November matches start in the US?
The first kick-off is listed at 17:00 UTC. That is 12:00 p.m. Eastern and 9:00 a.m. Pacific.
How does qualification work with three co-hosts?
Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda qualify automatically. In groups without a host the top two advance, and in host groups only the best non-host team does.
Who is favoured in Nigeria’s group?
Polymarket prices Nigeria at 54.5% and Guinea-Bissau at 41.2% to win Group L. These are bets, not polls.
Sources: Confederation of African Football (cafonline.com), Polymarket, national football federations, fixture listings.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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