The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially confirmed the 16 nations that will compete at the 2026 Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations.
Algeria claimed the final qualification slot after defeating Egypt 1-0 at the Martyrs of Benina Stadium, sealing their place among Africa’s top youth teams.
The tournament will be hosted by Morocco from April 25 to May 15, 2026, and will also serve as Africa’s qualification route to the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar. With the global competition expanded to 48 teams, ten African nations will earn tickets from the tournament.
The countries set to feature at the competition include Algeria, Angola, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, hosts Morocco, Mozambique, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda.
Nigeria, however, will not be part of the tournament for the second consecutive edition. The Golden Eaglets hopes were dashed after a 2-0 loss to Ghana in the semi-finals of the WAFU Zone B qualifiers in September 2025.
Qualification for the U-17 AFCON is determined through CAF’s regional zonal competitions, where teams battle within their respective zones for limited slots at the finals. Nigeria’s defeat at the semi-final stage meant they once again fell short of reaching the continental tournament.
