By KUNLE SOLAJA.

Continental debutants Abia Warriors will take on Malian giants Djoliba, with the Nigerian side hosting the first leg.

Djoliba AC is the dominant club in Mali, having been champions 24 times. They have won the national cup 20 times.

While Abia Warriors will be playing their first CAF Confederation Cup when they face the Malians next month, it will be the 55th Confederation Cup match for Djoliba.

Their continental experience is further underlined by the 76 matches they have played in the CAF Champions League. In addition, Djoliba, which is the native name for the River Niger in Mali, have also played in the old CAF Winners Cup 22 times and the defunct Abiola CAF Cup 16 times bringing their total continental matches to 168.

In those matches, Djoliba won 63, drew 44 and lost 56.

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Nigeria’s flagbearers in the CAF Confederation Cup, Abia Warriors and Kwara United, are both in Pot 1 ahead of the Draw ceremony holding this Saturday in Tanzania. In essence, both teams will avoid each other in the preliminary stage.

A total of 58 clubs entered this season’s competition, featuring several continental heavyweights and ambitious debutantes.

Among the debutantes is Nigeria’s Abia Warriors. The draw will be conducted at Azam Media Studios at 13h00 local time (10h00 GMT) and will be broadcast live on CAF’s YouTube channel and through CAF’s broadcast partners.

This season, teams eliminated in the first two rounds will each receive USD 100,000 to assist with logistical costs, as CAF continues its strategy of encouraging broader participation and competitive balance across the continent.

The road to the 2025/26 title will begin with the Preliminary Round between 19–21 September (first leg) and 26–28 September (second leg).

With 58 teams registered, six clubs – including former continental champions and recent finalists – have received byes into the Second Preliminary Round based on their CAF Club Rankings.

Exempted clubs: Wydad AC (Morocco), USM Alger (Algeria), CR Belouizdad (Algeria), Zamalek SC (Egypt), Al Masry SC (Egypt), Stellenbosch FC (South Africa)

The remaining teams have been divided into three pots according to their CAF Club Ranking and geographical proximity, taking into account regional unions such as UNAF, WAFU, CECAFA, COSAFA, and UNIFFAC.

POTS FOR THE DRAW
Pot 1 – Coton Sport (Benin), USFA (Burkina Faso), Aigle Royal (Cameroon), AF Amadou Diallo (Côte d’Ivoire), FC San Pedro (Côte d’Ivoire), Asante Kotoko (Ghana), Hafia FC (Guinea), Black Man Warrior (Liberia), ASC Snim (Mauritania), OCS (Morocco), ASN Nigelec (Niger), Abia Warriors (Nigeria), Kwara United (Nigeria), Génération Foot (Senegal), Bhantal FC (Sierra Leone), AS Gbohloe-su (Togo), Stade Tunisien (Tunisia)

Pot 2 – Flambeau du Centre (Burundi), AS Port (Djibouti), Wolitta Dicha SC (Ethiopia), Nairobi United FC (Kenya), Libya 1 (Libya), Libya 2 (Libya), Rayon Sport FC (Rwanda), Dekadaha FC (Somalia), El Merriekh FC Bentiu (South Sudan), Al Ahli Madani (Sudan), Al Zamalek Umr. (Sudan), Singida Black Stars (Tanzania), Azam FC (Tanzania), NEC FC (Uganda), KMKM SC (Zanzibar)

Pot 3 – Kabuscorp de Palanca (Angola), CD 1º de Agosto (Angola), Djabal FC (Comoros), RD Congo 1 (DR Congo), RD Congo 2 (DR Congo), FC 15 Agosto (Equatorial Guinea), FC 105 (Gabon), AS Fanalamanga (Madagascar), Mighty Wanderers (Malawi), Pamplemousses (Mauritius), Ferroviário de Maputo (Mozambique), Young Africans FC (Namibia), Foresters FC (Seychelles), Zesco United (Zambia)

Ranked clubs entering in Preliminary Round: Djoliba AC de Bamako (Mali), Jwaneng Galaxy (Botswana), Étoile Sportive du Sahel (Tunisia), Kaizer Chiefs (South Africa), Royal Leopards (Eswatini), AS Otohô (Congo)

COMPETITION TIMELINE
Preliminary Round: First Leg – 19–21 September 2025; Second Leg – 26–28 September 2025

Second Preliminary Round: First Leg – 17–19 October 2025; Second Leg – 24–26 October 2025

Group Stage: Begins 28 November 2025

Knockout Phase: Starts 3 April 2026

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Moroccan side, Renaissance Sportive de Berkane secured a third continental title after drawing against Tanzania’s Simba Sports Club (2-0 in the first leg, 1-1 in the return).

Moroccan football’s representatives had the privilege of being the first to lift the new CAF trophy.

It is the fifth time they have played the final match of the competition, and they were successful in 2020 and 2022.  In the return leg of the final match this Sunday, Berkane overcame challenges put in their way ahead of the match at the Amaan Stadium in Zanzibar.

The match got off to a flying start, with the hosts dominating, determined to open the scoring in the opening minutes of play. Once again, Berkane retreated into defence, a far cry from the spirit displayed in the first leg.

It took about fifteen minutes for Mouine Chaâbani’s men to truly get into the game.

While they launched their first dangerous attack, a missed opportunity in front of the opposing goal cost them dearly. On the ensuing counterattack, Simba’s Zambian striker, Joshua Mutale, beat goalkeeper Munir Mohamedi in the 17th minute.

The second half resumed with the same intensity, but the tension rose, especially after Simba attacking midfielder Yusuph Kagoma was sent off for a second yellow card.

Berkane then took a numerical advantage and regained control of the game.

Stung to the quick, the home side continued to engage in skirmishes, but without any real threat to goalkeeper Munir Mohamedi.

 Yet, even with ten men down, Simba’s players gave the Berkanis a hard time, posing several threats.

Deliverance finally came in the 93rd minute thanks to Mamadou Lamine Camara, who scored the equaliser, in a closely contested duel, in a packed stadium, and under the eyes of Fouzi Lekjaa, president of the FRMF, as well as Walid Regragui, national coach. 

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