ABIDJAN (Cote d'Ivoire) - Of the 32 national teams expected in Qatar, five will come from Africa. Window 1 of the qualifiers, which is scheduled for later this month, should provide an indication of what lies ahead.
In this article, we provide all the information you need about the 2027 World Cup African Qualifiers.
COMPETITION SYSTEM
16 teams will play across 5 windows, with 5 nations advancing to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
First Round
There will be four groups of 4 teams, with each nation playing each other twice across two tournaments, with 6 games in total.
The top three teams from each group will advance to the Second Round.
Second Round
The teams will be placed into two new groups with all results carried forward, meaning every single game counts.
Each nation will then play 6 games - competing against the teams they have not yet faced.
The 2 best placed teams in each group, along with the best third placed team will advance to the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
In the first Window of the World Cup African Qualifiers in November, eight teams will be split into two groups of four, with each team playing the others in their group once. The teams will then play each other once more in future tournaments, with six games in total for the right to advance to the second round.
To make it to the Last 12, teams must finish in the top three places from their groups while the teams that finish last will be eliminated.
WHAT ARE THE AFRICAN QUALIFIERS?
The World Cup African Qualifiers are tournaments in which national teams from across the continent compete for the five World Cup spots allocated to Africa.
Historically, African teams have qualified for the World Cup by finishing in the top places at the AfroBasket tournament. This remained the case until 2013, when the African champions, Angola, the runners-up, Egypt, and the bronze medallists represented Africa at the 2014 World Cup in Spain.
Ahead of the 2019 World Cup, FIBA introduced a new competition system in 2017, designed to give national teams more opportunities to play in front of their home fans.
HOW MANY EDITIONS HAVE BEEN PLAYED?
Following the inaugural cycle leading to China 2019, the qualifiers continued for the 2023 World Cup in Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines. This current cycle toward Qatar 2027 marks the third edition of the system, eight years since the first game was played under this format.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
There are many questions about the African qualifiers, but the most important one is which teams will represent the continent at the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the first edition to be held in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Two years ago, Angola, Cape Verde, C么te d'Ivoire, Egypt and South Sudan carried Africa's flag in Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines. Who will follow suit?
IS THERE AN APP?
There is, download the official FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Qualifiers app on iPhone and Android devices.
WHICH TEAMS ARE COMPETING IN WINDOW 1?
Teams have been drawn as follows:
Group A: Cameroon, Cape Verde, Libya, South Sudan. Group B: Senegal, DR Congo, Madagascar, C么te d'Ivoire. Group C: Guinea, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tunisia. Group D: Mali, Angola, Uganda, Egypt.
Teams from Groups B and D will begin their African Qualifiers in the second window in February 2026.
WHEN AND WHERE WILL THE FIRST WINDOW OF THE AFRICAN QUALIFIERS HAPPEN?
Check on the website's GAMES page for exact details on which day your favorite team is playing.
馃搮WHEN WILL THE WINDOWS TAKE PLACE?
1st Window: November 27 - November 30, 2025
2nd Window: February 26 - March 1, 2026
3rd Window: July 2 - July 5, 2026
4th Window: August 27 - August 30
5th Window: February 25 - February 28, 2026
馃獰WHAT'S A WINDOW? The windows are where teams will play the qualifying games. Each of the five windows in the African Qualifiers are nine four in length.
CLICK HERE for the full schedule of the tournament.
The Tunisian city of Rades, on the outskirts of the capital Tunis, will host the first window of the African Qualifiers from November 27-30.
Salle Omnisport de Rades has become a regular host for African basketball competitions, having hosted two editions of AfroBasket in 2015 and 2017.
HOW DID THEY QUALIFY?
All 16 teams reached the World Cup African Qualifiers by qualifying to the 2025 FIBA AfroBasket held in Angola.
HOW TO WATCH THE GAMES?
For those unable to attend games at Salle Omnisport de Rades, there are several ways for you to watch these games on your TV through local broadcast partners.
Stream the action on Courtside 1891, with live games and on-demand replays. Blackouts might apply in certain territories.
We recommend checking the specific game pages to find out how you can watch in your territory. More information will be provided as we get closer to the start of the competition.
For more viewing content, head to FIBA's official YouTube channel. The game pages will have the more exact information through the RH Booking automated system.
FIBA WORLD RANKINGS (AFRICA) AHEAD OF WINDOW 1 OF THE 2027 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS*
* Last updated on September 15, 2025
# AFRICA | COUNTRY | WORLD RANK | POINTS | +/- |
1. | South Sudan | 24. | 446.7 | -1 |
2. | Angola | 29. | 391 | +4 |
3. | C么te d'Ivoire | 36. | 330.8 | -5 |
4. | Egypt | 42. | 296.8 | -4 |
5. | Senegal | 45. | 270.6 | +2 |
6. | Cape Verde | 49. | 257.8 | -4 |
7. | Tunisia | 50. | 253.8 | -14 |
8. | Nigeria | 53. | 248.7 | -11 |
9. | Cameroon | 57. | 209.3 | +7 |
10. | Mali | 65. | 179.1 | +18 |
11. | Guinea | 72. | 143 | +3 |
12. | DR Congo | 73. | 141.8 | -1 |
13. | Uganda | 86. | 113.4 | -1 |
14. | Rwanda | 90. | 106.7 | +3 |
15. | Central Afr. Rep | 92. | 104.1 | -3 |
16. | Libya | 96. | 91.8 | -2 |
17. | Kenya | 100. | 88.2 | -3 |
18. | Madagascar | 103. | 85.4 | +2 |
19. | South Africa | 110. | 74.2 | +17 |
20. | Burundi | 112. | 73.9 | +2 |
FIBA