CAF Champions League: 2025/26 edition promises fireworks as continental season begins
Kenyan champions Kenya Police FC will represent the country's hopes in this year's, competition, where they will take on neighbours Mogadishu City FC in their preliminary group stage clash, a fixture that will generate genuine interest considering the local context
It promises to be an exciting season for African football lovers with domestic leagues set to begin in the coming weeks following the completion of the African Nations Championships CHAN in August.
Most local African leagues begin this September, with the Kenyan Premier League for example, kicking off on 20 September. Concurrently, the race for African club football’s most coveted crown has officially kicked off following the draw for the Preliminary and Second Preliminary Rounds of the Confederation of African Football CAF, Champions League 2025/26, held in Tanzania last month.
By numbers, the 2025/26 season will be the biggest yet, with a record 62 clubs from across the continent featuring in this season’s competition, a massive feather in the cap for CAF.
Record title winners Al Ahly of Egypt and South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns, both absolutely top-ranked sides, qualify direct into the Second Preliminary Round. Meanwhile, defending champions Pyramids FC of Egypt will face Rwanda’s APR in a mouthwatering clash that may be the highlight of all first round matches.
Kenyan champions Kenya Police FC will represent the country's hopes in this year's, competition. They will take on the challenge of neighbours and Somali champions Mogadishu City FC in their preliminary group stage clash, a fixture that will generate interest considering the local context. Kenya hosts a large Somali community within its borders.
The winner of the two legged tie will battle either South Sudan outfit Jamus FC or African heavyweight Al Hilal of Sudan, who clash in their first round preliminary two leg tie.
North African powerhouses could meet early as Sierra Leone’s East End Lions face Tunisia’s US Monastirienne, with the winners earning a shot at the winners of the clash between Ghana’s Bibiani Gold Stars and Algerian giants JS Kabylie.
Liberia’s FC Fassell will hope to overcome Senegal’s ASC Jaraaf for a potential meeting with Algeria’s MC Alger, while Benin’s Dadjè FC and Libya’s representative, Libya 1, clash for the chance to face Togo’s ASCK or Morocco’s RS Berkane.
Elsewhere, Nigeria’s Remo Stars meet Comoros’ US Zilimadjou for the right to play Sundowns, while Zimbabwe’s Simba Bhora tackle Eswatini’s Nsingizini Hotspurs in a tie that leads to a showdown with Botswana’s Gaborone United and in the second round, Tanzania’s Simba SC.
Zambia’s Power Dynamos begin against Ivorian heavyweights ASEC Mimosas with the winner of the match between Namibia’s African Stars and Vipers FC of Uganda waiting in the wings.
Rahimo FC of Burkina Faso will face Gabon’s AS Mangasport with the winners taking on the victor in Niger’s Forces Armées meeting Tunisian giants Espérance Sportive de Tunis (EST).
The Preliminary Round kicks off with first-leg matches between 19–21 September 2025 and second-leg matches between 26–28 September 2025. The Second Preliminary Round follows from 17–19 October (first leg) and 24–26 October (second leg).
The Group Stage begins on 21 November 2025, with the knockout phase set to start on 13 March 2026.
Radio Generation Sport will exhaustively cover the 2025/26 CAF Champions League from start to finish.
