2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
Tournament details
Dates12 June 2015 – 4 September 2016
Teams51 (from 1 confederation)
Tournament statistics
Matches played144
Goals scored363 (2.52 per match)
Top scorer(s)Algeria Hillal Soudani
(7 goals)

The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches were organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to decide the participating teams of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, the 31st edition of the international men's football championship of Africa. A total of 16 teams qualified to play in the final tournament, including Gabon who qualified automatically as hosts.[1]

Draw

A total of 52 teams entered the tournament, including the hosts (Gabon) which qualified automatically for the final tournament. The draw for the qualification stage took place on 8 April 2015, immediately after the announcement of the host nation,[2] originally scheduled at 12:30 UTC+2 at the Marriott ‘Zamalek’ Hotel in Cairo, Egypt,[3] but delayed to 15:00.[4] The host nation team (Gabon) was also drawn into a group and played games against those in that group; however, these matches were only considered as friendlies and not counted for the standings.

Due to the cancellation of Morocco being hosts of the 2015 edition, the national team of Morocco were originally banned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to enter the 2017 and 2019 Africa Cups of Nations.[5] However, the ban was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, allowing Morocco to enter the tournament.[6]

Seeding

For seeding, the teams were ranked using CAF's own system which were calculated based on the team's performance in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying tournament, the three most recent editions the Africa Cup of Nations, and their qualifying campaigns.[7][8]

Pot Rank Team Tournaments and weighting factor Total
2015 AFCON 2015 AFCON Q. 2013 AFCON 2013 AFCON Q. 2012 AFCON 2012 AFCON Q. 2014 FIFA WC Q.
× 3 × 2 × 2 × 1 × 1 × 0.5 × 1
Pot 1 1 Ivory Coast2486362756
2 Ghana18108342752
3 Tunisia9104331.5535.5
4 Burkina Faso3812312534
5 Mali688342334
6 Nigeria61631.5733.5
7 Algeria910231732
8 Zambia384382331
9 Cape Verde610631.5329.5
10 DR Congo126431228
11 Guinea98222326
12 Senegal68212524
13 Cameroon31021.5723.5
Pot 2 14 South Africa31061.5323.5
Pot X 15 Gabon (Host)61023223
Pot 2 16 Congo9811322
17 Equatorial Guinea12123119
18 Angola62322217
19 Ethiopia4231515
20 Togo4630.5114.5
21 Morocco4322314
22 Niger42312113
23 Egypt610.5512.5
24 Uganda621.5312.5
25 Malawi621312
26 Sudan4231.5111.5
27 Mozambique621211
Pot 3 28 Botswana4212211
29 Libya1221.539.5
30 Sierra Leone42129
31 Lesotho426
32 Kenya21126
33 Benin210.525.5
34 Rwanda211.515.5
35 Tanzania210.525.5
36 Central African Republic121.515.5
37 Zimbabwe12115
38 Liberia120.514.5
39 Gambia111.514.5
40 Namibia11114
Pot 4 41 Guinea-Bissau210.53.5
42 Seychelles213
43 Burundi1113
44 Mauritania20.52.5
45 Chad110.52.5
45 Madagascar110.52.5
47 São Tomé and Príncipe112
48 Comoros10.51.5
48 Swaziland10.51.5
50 South Sudan11
51 Mauritius0.50.5
52 Djibouti0
Non-participants

Procedure

The draw procedure is as follows:[9]

  • The hosts are placed in its own Pot X. A drawing of lots determines which group the hosts are "drawn" to play friendlies against (meaning this group in effect only has three teams).
  • The 13 teams in Pot 1 are drawn, with each group containing one team.
  • The 13 teams in Pot 2 are drawn, with each group containing one team.
  • The 13 teams in Pot 3 are drawn, with each group containing one team.
  • The 12 teams in Pot 4 are drawn, with each group, except the one with only three teams (where the host had already been "drawn" into), containing one team.

Format

There were thirteen groups, twelve with four teams and one with three teams (plus the host nation which played friendlies with the three teams). The group winners and two best overall runners-up qualified for the tournament.[2] When determining the best runners-up, the group of the host nation (where only matches between three teams were counted for the standings) was not considered, as well as any group where only three teams were left due to withdrawal of one team.[2]

Tiebreakers

The teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). If tied on points, tiebreakers were applied in the following order:[10]

  1. Number of points obtained in games between the teams concerned;
  2. Goal difference in games between the teams concerned;
  3. Goals scored in games between the teams concerned;
  4. Away goals scored in games between the teams concerned;
  5. If, after applying criteria 1 to 4 to several teams, two teams still have an equal ranking, criteria 1 to 4 are reapplied exclusively to the matches between the two teams in question to determine their final rankings. If this procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria 6 to 9 apply;
  6. Goal difference in all games;
  7. Goals scored in all games;
  8. Away goals scored in all games;
  9. Drawing of lots.

Schedule

The qualifiers started with the first matches played in the FIFA international dates of 8–16 June 2015.[2][11]

Matchday Date
Matchday 1 12–14 June 2015
Matchday 2 4–6 September 2015
Matchday 3 23–26 March 2016
Matchday 4 27–29 March 2016
Matchday 5 3–5 June 2016
Matchday 6 2–4 September 2016

Groups

  The thirteen group winners and the two best runners-up qualified for the final tournament.

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Tunisia 6 4 1 1 16 3 +13 13 Final tournament — 1–0 4–1 8–1
2  Togo 6 3 2 1 11 4 +7 11 0–0 — 2–1 5–0
3  Liberia 6 3 1 2 11 8 +3 10 1–0 2–2 — 5–0
4  Djibouti 6 0 0 6 1 24 −23 0 0–3 0–2 0–1 —
Source: CAF

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  DR Congo 6 5 0 1 16 6 +10 15 Final tournament — 4–1 2–1 2–1
2  Central African Republic 6 3 1 2 9 11 −2 10 2–0 — 3–1 2–1
3  Angola 6 1 2 3 7 8 −1 5 0–2 4–0 — 1–1
4  Madagascar 6 0 3 3 5 12 −7 3 1–6 1–1 0–0 —
Source: CAF

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Mali 6 5 1 0 13 3 +10 16 Final tournament — 5–2 1–0 2–0
2  Benin 6 3 2 1 12 10 +2 11 1–1 — 2–1 4–1
3  Equatorial Guinea 6 1 1 4 6 6 0 4 0–1 1–1 — 4–0
4  South Sudan 6 1 0 5 3 15 −12 3 0–3 1–2 1–0 —
Source: CAF

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Burkina Faso 6 4 1 1 6 2 +4 13 Final tournament — 1–0 2–1 2–0
2  Uganda 6 4 1 1 6 2 +4 13 0–0 — 2–0 1–0
3  Botswana 6 2 0 4 5 8 −3 6 1–0 1–2 — 2–1
4  Comoros 6 1 0 5 2 7 −5 3 0–1 0–1 1–0 —
Source: CAF

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Guinea-Bissau 6 3 1 2 7 7 0 10 Final tournament — 2–4 3–2 1–0
2  Congo 6 2 3 1 9 7 +2 9 1–0 — 1–1 1–1
3  Zambia 6 1 4 1 7 7 0 7 0–0 1–1 — 1–1
4  Kenya 6 1 2 3 5 7 −2 5 0–1 2–1 1–2 —
Source: CAF

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Morocco 6 5 1 0 10 1 +9 16 Final tournament — 2–0 1–0 2–0
2  Cape Verde 6 3 0 3 11 7 +4 9 0–1 — 0–1 7–1
3  Libya 6 2 1 3 8 6 +2 7 1–1 1–2 — 4–0
4  São Tomé and Príncipe 6 1 0 5 4 19 −15 3 0–3 1–2 2–1 —
Source: CAF

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Egypt 4 3 1 0 7 1 +6 10 Final tournament — 1–0 3–0 Canc.
2  Nigeria 4 1 2 1 2 2 0 5 1–1 — 1–0 2–0
3  Tanzania 4 0 1 3 0 6 −6 1 0–2 0–0 — Canc.
4  Chad 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Withdrew[lower-alpha 1] 1–5 Canc. 0–1 —
Source: CAF
Notes:
  1. ↑ On 27 March 2016, it was announced that Chad had withdrawn from the competition on financial grounds.[12][13] At that point, Chad had played three matches, and all results were annulled and not taken into consideration according to the regulations. Moreover, the runners-up were not eligible to qualify as one of the two group runners-up with the best records.

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Ghana 6 4 2 0 14 3 +11 14 Final tournament — 3–1 1–1 7–1
2  Mozambique 6 2 1 3 5 7 −2 7 0–0 — 0–1 1–0
3  Rwanda 6 2 1 3 9 6 +3 7 0–1 2–3 — 5–0
4  Mauritius 6 2 0 4 3 15 −12 6 0–2 1–0 1–0 —
Source: CAF

Group I

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Ivory Coast 4 1 3 0 3 2 +1 6 Final tournament — 1–1 1–0
2  Sierra Leone 4 1 2 1 2 2 0 5 0–0 — 1–0
3  Sudan 4 1 1 2 2 3 −1 4 1–1 1–0 —
Source: CAF
  •  Gabon was also drawn into this group and played against the other three teams in the group; however, those matches were only considered friendlies and did not count for the standings.

Group J

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Algeria 6 5 1 0 25 5 +20 16 Final tournament — 7–1 4–0 6–0
2  Ethiopia 6 3 2 1 11 14 −3 11 3–3 — 2–1 2–1
3  Seychelles 6 1 1 4 5 11 −6 4 0–2 1–1 — 2–0
4  Lesotho 6 1 0 5 5 16 −11 3 1–3 1–2 2–1 —
Source: CAF

Group K

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Senegal 6 6 0 0 13 2 +11 18 Final tournament — 3–1 2–0 2–0
2  Burundi 6 2 0 4 8 12 −4 6 0–2 — 1–3 2–0
3  Namibia 6 2 0 4 5 9 −4 6 0–2 1–3 — 1–0
4  Niger 6 2 0 4 5 8 −3 6 1–2 3–1 1–0 —
Source: CAF

Group L

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Zimbabwe 6 3 2 1 11 4 +7 11 Final tournament — 4–0 1–1 3–0
2  Swaziland 6 2 2 2 6 9 −3 8 1–1 — 1–0 2–2
3  Guinea 6 2 2 2 5 5 0 8 1–0 1–2 — 0–0
4  Malawi 6 1 2 3 5 9 −4 5 1–2 1–0 1–2 —
Source: CAF

Group M

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Cameroon 6 4 2 0 7 2 +5 14 Final tournament — 1–0 2–2 2–0
2  Mauritania 6 2 2 2 6 5 +1 8 0–1 — 3–1 2–1
3  South Africa 6 1 4 1 8 6 +2 7 0–0 1–1 — 0–0
4  Gambia 6 0 2 4 1 9 −8 2 0–1 0–0 0–4 —
Source: CAF

Ranking of second-placed teams

Only groups with four teams were considered for this ranking. Therefore, Group I was not considered, as well as Group G, where only three teams were left due to the withdrawal of one team.[2]

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 D  Uganda 6 4 1 1 6 2 +4 13 Final tournament
2 A  Togo 6 3 2 1 11 4 +7 11
3 C  Benin 6 3 2 1 12 10 +2 11
4 J  Ethiopia 6 3 2 1 11 14 −3 11
5 B  Central African Republic 6 3 1 2 9 11 −2 10
6 F  Cape Verde 6 3 0 3 11 7 +4 9
7 E  Congo 6 2 3 1 9 7 +2 9
8 M  Mauritania 6 2 2 2 6 5 +1 8
9 L  Swaziland 6 2 2 2 6 9 −3 8
10 H  Mozambique 6 2 1 3 5 7 −2 7
11 K  Burundi 6 2 0 4 8 12 −4 6
Source: CAF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Drawing of lots

Qualified teams

  Qualified
  Failed to qualify
  Withdrew, disqualified or did not enter
  Not part of CAF

The following teams qualified for the tournament.

Team Qualified as Qualified on Previous appearances in tournament1
 GabonHosts8 April 20156 (1994, 1996, 2000, 2010, 2012, 2015)
 MoroccoGroup F winners29 March 201615 (1972, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013)
 AlgeriaGroup J winners2 June 201616 (1968, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2013, 2015)
 CameroonGroup M winners3 June 201617 (1970, 1972, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2015)
 SenegalGroup K winners4 June 201613 (1965, 1968, 1986, 1990, 1992, 1994, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2015)
 EgyptGroup G winners4 June 201622 (1957, 1959, 1962, 1963, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010)
 GhanaGroup H winners5 June 201620 (1963, 1965, 1968, 1970, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015)
 Guinea-BissauGroup E winners5 June 20160 (debut)
 ZimbabweGroup L winners5 June 20162 (2004, 2006)
 MaliGroup C winners5 June 20169 (1972, 1994, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015)
 Ivory CoastGroup I winners3 September 201621 (1965, 1968, 1970, 1974, 1980, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015)
 UgandaGroup D runners-up4 September 20165 (1962, 1968, 1974, 1976, 1978)
 Burkina FasoGroup D winners4 September 201610 (1978, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015)
 TunisiaGroup A winners4 September 201617 (1962, 1963, 1965, 1978, 1982, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015)
 DR CongoGroup B winners4 September 201617 (1965, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1988, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2013, 2015)
 TogoGroup A runners-up4 September 20167 (1972, 1984, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2013)
1 Bold indicates champion for that year. Italic indicates host for that year.

Goalscorers

7 goals
6 goals
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
1 own goal

References

  1. ↑ "Gabon named hosts of AFCON 2017". CAF. 8 April 2015. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "FORMAT OF 2017 AFCON QUALIFIERS AND 2018 WORLD CUP". CAFonline.com. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "Accreditation for 37th CAF Ordinary General Assembly and Official Draw for AFCON 2017 qualifiers". CAF. 11 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Results of AFCON 2017 qualifiers draw". CAF. 8 April 2015.
  5. ↑ "Morocco Fined, Banned From Two AFCON Tournaments". CAF Online. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Morocco win appeal over Afcon 2017 and 2019 bans". BBC Sport. 2 April 2015.
  7. ↑ "CAN 2017 DRAW PROCEDURE AND RANKING". CAFonline.com. 8 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  8. ↑ "CAF Ranking" (XLS). CAF.
  9. ↑ "Draw of the Qualifiers of CAN 2017 qualifiers" (PDF). CAF.
  10. ↑ "Regulations of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations" (PDF). Confederation of African Football.
  11. ↑ "Result of the drawing of lots" (PDF). CAF.
  12. ↑ "Withdrawal of Chad from AFCON 2017 qualifiers". CAF. 27 March 2016.
  13. ↑ "Chad withdraw from Nations Cup on financial grounds". BBC. 27 March 2016.
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