CAF Champions League 2026–27 Kick-off Date Set for August
The road to the 2026–27 CAF Champions League is about to take shape, with the Confederation of African Football poised to launch the new campaign in early August.
According to Moroccan outlet El Botola, citing an official source inside CAF’s Club Competitions Committee, the preliminary draw is expected to be held on August 6 in Cairo, Egypt. One date, one room, and the first outlines of a season that will stretch across the continent.
CAF plans to stage the ceremony once the club registration window closes and national associations sign off on participating squads. Only after those lists are locked in will the balls go into the pots, ensuring that every name in the draw actually has the paperwork to back it.
Behind the scenes, there has been a push for change. The Egyptian Football Association tabled a proposal to increase the number of clubs in CAF’s interclub competitions, a move that would have opened the door to more teams and potentially reshaped qualification battles in several leagues. CAF has turned that idea down.
El Botola reports that the Competitions Committee opted to keep the current format intact for the 2026–27 season, resisting calls to expand or tweak the structure. No extra places, no new wrinkles. The Champions League will run on the same lines as this past campaign, at least for one more year.
For Morocco, the stakes are already clear. RS Berkane and Maghreb de Fès will carry the country’s flag in the next edition, both eyeing long runs in Africa’s flagship club tournament. For Berkane, a club accustomed to deep continental journeys, the target will be to translate that pedigree into a serious tilt at the Champions League. For Maghreb de Fès, the draw in Cairo will mark the start of a demanding test against some of the continent’s most seasoned operators.
The preliminary draw will map out the opening hurdles: who travels where, which giants face tricky away days on unfamiliar pitches, and which newcomers get thrown straight into the deep end. From those early ties, the field will be cut down toward the coveted group stage, where the rhythm of midweek African nights truly begins.
On August 6 in Cairo, the continent’s next Champions League story starts with a handful of names, a few minutes on stage, and the quiet knowledge that some clubs’ seasons will be defined by what the draw delivers.
