The journey to next year’s World Cup is reaching a dramatic new phase for Africa’s hopefuls, with a brutal and unusually complex playoff format determining who keeps their dream alive.
Softfootball had gathered that Four nations — Gabon, Nigeria, Cameroon and DR Congo — qualified as the best second-place finishers from the African group stage and now enter single-elimination semifinals in Morocco on Thursday, 13 November.
Gabon face Nigeria, while Cameroon take on DR Congo, with the winners advancing to a final just three days later. But even that victory won’t be enough.
The African playoff champion will move on to a six-team intercontinental tournament next March featuring representatives from every confederation: Bolivia from South America, New Caledonia from Oceania, and either the UAE or Iraq from Asia.
The six teams will be divided into two brackets, with the highest-ranked side in each receiving a bye straight into the final — a position Africa’s representative is likely to claim.
That leaves the remaining nations to battle through an additional semifinal for the right to face the African playoff winner in a decisive showdown for a World Cup berth.
For Cameroon, DR Congo, Gabon and Nigeria, the equation is simple but unforgiving: win three straight knockout matches, or watch the World Cup slip away.
