THE JOURNEY TO MOROCCO BEGINS: TIGHT SCHEDULE FOR ESWATINI IN AFCON

MBABANE – Sihlangu faces a demanding AFCON schedule commencing in September, as per the latest tentative fixture released by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

This imperative necessitates the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) to expedite the recruitment of a new coach. EFA, on Monday, revealed that the new coach will be unveiled in two weeks. The urgency is palpable, as the appointed leader will confront an immediate and formidable challenge, with the 2025 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Qualifiers looming on the horizon, unfolding in a mere two months, starting in September. The incoming head coach will bear the weight of a 56-year-old national aspiration to qualify for the continent’s premier football showpiece, as CAF has condensed the fixtures into a tight three-month window.

Fortify

The group stages qualifiers’ draw took place last Thursday, with Eswatini seeded in Group I. With the tentative schedule released, Eswatini will commence their campaign away in Guinea Bissau on September 2, followed by hosting Mali on September 6. The programme outlines two games per month, affording Sihlangu a brief two-month window to fortify its preparations for the tournament. Subsequently, the national team will face Mozambique away on October 11, and then host the same opponents three days later. Eswatini will then host Guinea on November 11 and visit Mali three days later, concluding the group I matches.

In the AFCON group stages qualifiers, the first and second-placed teams from each of the 11 groups, excluding Group B, where hosts Morocco will secure their spots in the tournament. The finals of this tournament are scheduled from December 21, 2025, to January 2026.Following the qualifiers, the national team will resume action in 2025, with Eswatini expected to host Cameroon and Mauritius between March 17 and 25, during the fifth and sixth rounds of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers.

Meanwhile, CAF will conduct the draw of the Preliminary Stages of the CAF 2024/25 Interclub season today, at the CAF Headquarters in Cairo, Egypt. The draw will be live on CAF’s official YouTube channel, CAF TV at 3pm, where Eswatini’s CAF representatives in Mbabane Swallows and Nsingizini Hotspurs, will discover their opponents. The tournament is set to commence in August, adding to the high-stakes football calendar that awaits Eswatini’s football fraternity. Reached for comment, EFA Marketing and Communications Officer Muzi Radebe, said the official fixture is not yet out.

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