| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 22 July – 4 September 2022 | 
| Teams | 42 (from 1 confederation) | 
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 54 | 
| Goals scored | 105 (1.94 per match) | 
| Top scorer(s) | (3 goals each)  | 
The 2022 African Nations Championship qualification was a men's football competition which decided the participating teams of the 2022 African Nations Championship. Only national team players who were playing in their country's own domestic league were eligible to compete in the tournament.
A total of 18 teams qualified to play in the final tournament, including Algeria which qualified automatically as hosts.
Teams
A total of 42 (out of 54) CAF member national teams entered the qualifying rounds, split into zones according to their regional affiliations. The draw for the qualifying rounds was held on 26 May 2022 at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.
| Zone | Spots (total 18) | Teams entering qualification | Did not enter | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Zone (UNAF)  | 
2 spots+ | 
||
| Western Zone A (WAFU-UFOA A)  | 
3 spots | ||
| Western Zone B (WAFU-UFOA B)  | 
3 spots | ||
| Central Zone (UNIFFAC)  | 
3 spots | ||
| Central Eastern Zone (CECAFA)  | 
3 spots | ||
| Southern Zone (COSAFA)  | 
3 spots | 
- Notes
 
- Teams in bold qualified for the final tournament.
 - Teams in italics received a bye to the second round in the qualifying draw.
 - (W): Withdrew after draw
 
Format
Qualification ties were played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score was tied after the second leg, the away goals rule would be applied, and if still level, the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner (no extra time would be played).[1]
Schedule
The schedule of the qualifying rounds was as follows.
| Zone / Round | Matchday | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Zone A Western Zone B Central Zone Central Eastern Zone  | 
Southern Zone | ||
| First round | First round | First leg | 22–24 July 2022 | 
| Second leg | 26–31 July 2022 | ||
| Second round | Second round | First leg | 26–29 August 2022 | 
| Second leg | 2–4 September 2022 | ||
Northern Zone
Algeria qualified as host nation.
After Egypt and Tunisia withdrew before the draw, Libya and Morocco were the only teams entered: therefore, the Zone was scratched and both teams qualified.
Western Zone A
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberia  | 
2–4 | 0–3 | 2–1 | |
| Sierra Leone  | 
3–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | |
| Gambia  | 
1–1 (3–5 p) | 1–0 | 0–1 | 
Senegal won 4–2 on aggregate.
| Sierra Leone  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report | 
| Cape Verde  | 2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report  Report  | 
  | 
Sierra Leone won 3–2 on aggregate.
| Gambia  | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report | 
| Guinea-Bissau  | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report | |
| Penalties | ||
| 5–3 | ||
1–1 on aggregate. Guinea-Bissau won 5–3 on penalties.
Second round
Winners qualified for 2022 African Nations Championship.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senegal  | 
1–1 (5–3 p) | 1–0 | 0–1 | |
| Sierra Leone  | 
1–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | |
| Guinea-Bissau  | 
0–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 
| Sierra Leone  | 1–2 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
| Mali  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Mauritania  | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Western Zone B
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ghana  | 
4–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 
Ghana won 4–0 on aggregate.
Second round
Winners qualified for 2022 African Nations Championship.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ivory Coast  | 
0–0 (5–3 p) | 0–0 | 0–0 | |
| Togo  | 
2–3 | 1–0 | 1–3 | |
| Ghana  | 
2–2 (5–4 p) | 2–0 | 0–2 | 
| Burkina Faso  | 0–0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
| 3–5 | ||
Central Zone
Winners qualified for 2022 African Nations Championship.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central African Republic  | 
2–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | |
| Equatorial Guinea  | 
1–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | |
| Chad  | 
1–7 | 1–2 | 0–5 | 
| Central African Republic  | 2–1 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
| Equatorial Guinea  | 1–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
| Cameroon  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Central Eastern Zone
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethiopia  | 
5–0 | 0–0 | 5–0 | |
| Somalia  | 
1–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | |
| Burundi  | 
3–3 (2–4 p) | 2–1 | 1–2 | 
| South Sudan  | 0–5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | 
  | 
Ethiopia won 5–0 on aggregate.
Tanzania won 3–1 on aggregate.
3–3 on aggregate. Djibouti won 4–2 on penalties.
Second round
Winners qualified for 2022 African Nations Championship.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethiopia  | 
1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | |
| Tanzania  | 
0–4 | 0–1 | 0–3 | |
| Djibouti  | 
3–7 | 1–4 | 2–3 | 
Southern Zone
First round
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mauritius  | 
0–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | |
| Comoros  | 
0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | |
| Botswana  | 
2–2 (a) | 0–0 | 2–2 | |
| Seychelles  | 
0–4 | 0–1 | 0–3 | |
| Malawi  | 
awd. | Cancelled | Cancelled | |
| Mozambique  | 
1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 
| Mauritius  | 0–2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | 
Angola won 3–0 on aggregate.
| Comoros  | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | 
  | 
South Africa won 1–0 on aggregate.
2–2 on aggregate. Botswana won on away goals rule.
| Seychelles  | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report | 
  | 
| Madagascar  | 3–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report Report Report  | 
Madagascar won 4–0 on aggregate.
Malawi advanced on walkover.
| Zambia  | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Report Report  | 
  | 
Mozambique won 1–0 on aggregate.
Second round
Winners qualified for 2022 African Nations Championship.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angola  | 
6–1 | 2–0 | 4–1 | |
| Botswana  | 
1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | |
| Malawi  | 
1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 
| Angola  | 2–0 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
Report | 
| South Africa  | 1–4 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
| Botswana  | 0–1 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
| Malawi  | 1–1 | |
|---|---|---|
  | 
  | 
Qualified teams
The following 18 teams qualified for the final tournament.
| Team | Qualifying zone | Qualified on | Previous appearances in African Nations Championship1 | 
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Zone | 29 September 2018 | 1 (2011) | |
| 26 May 2022 | 4 (2014, 2016, 2018, 2020) | ||
| 26 May 2022 | 4 (2009, 2014, 2018, 2020) | ||
| Western Zone A | 2 September 2022 | 2 (2009, 2011) | |
| 2 September 2022 | 2 (2014, 2018) | ||
| 3 September 2022 | 4 (2011, 2014, 2016, 2020) | ||
| Western Zone B | 3 September 2022 | 3 (2011, 2016, 2020) | |
| 3 September 2022 | 3 (2009, 2011, 2014) | ||
| 4 September 2022 | 4 (2009, 2011, 2016, 2018) | ||
| Central Zone | 4 September 2022 | 5 (2009, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2020) | |
| 4 September 2022 | 3 (2014, 2018, 2020) | ||
| 4 September 2022 | 4 (2011, 2016, 2018, 2020) | ||
| Central Eastern Zone | 2 September 2022 | 2 (2011, 2018) | |
| 3 September 2022 | 2 (2014, 2016) | ||
| 3 September 2022 | 5 (2011, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020) | ||
| Southern Zone | 2 September 2022 | 0 (Debut) | |
| 4 September 2022 | 3 (2011, 2016, 2018) | ||
| 4 September 2022 | 1 (2014) | 
Goalscorers
There were 105 goals scored in 54 matches, for an average of 1.94 goals per match.
3 goals
 Samuel Akinbinu
 Daniel Afriyie
 Tsilavina Razanakoto
2 goals
 Daniel José Kilola
 Kader Bidimbou
 Phillippe Kinzumbi
 Jean-Marc Makusu Mundele
 Ramond Ndour
 Alie Conteh
 Mohamed Abdelrahman
 Alsamani Alsawi
 Abdul Suleiman
1 goal
 Augusto Carneiro
 Pedro Pessoa Miguel
 Jó Paciência
 Teixiera
 Deivi Miguel Vieira
 Mothusi Johnson
 Thero Setsile
 Godfrey Tauyatswala
 Aimé Gakiza
 Akbar Muderi
 Cédric Urasenga
 Djawal Kaiba
 Souaibou Marou
 Gielson
 Kelton
 Delphin Mokonou
 Tresór Toropité
 Bakhit Djibrine
 Adam Bossu
 Ernest Luzolo
 Maxi Mpia
 Gabriel Dadzie
 Warsama Hassan
 Mahdi Houssein Mahabeh
 Pedro Oba
 Sandile Gamedze
 Fanelo Mamba
 Yigezu Bogale
 Amanuel Gebremichael
 Dawa Hotessa
 Mesud Mohammed
 Ramadan Yusef
 Alieu Barry
 Mohammed Alhassan
 Gladson Awako
 Seidu Suraj
 Ousmane Dramé
 Botche Cande
 Nicholas Andrews
 Sidiki Kromah
 Arohasina Andrianarimanana
 Rinjala Raherinaivo
 Marcio Ravelomanantsoa
 Yamikani Chester
 Ousmane Kamissoko
 Makan Samabaly
 Issaka Samaké
 Hamidou Sinayoko
 Bodda Mouhsine
 Devrason
 Pachoio Lau Há King
 Abdoul Garba
 Boubacar Haïnikoye
 Mossi Issa Moussa
 Chijioke Akuneto
 Zulkifilu Rabiu
 Mélèye Diagne
 Jean Louis Diouf
 Bouly Sambou
 Prince Barrie
 Musa Noah Kamara
 Farhan Mohamed Ahmed
 Prince Nxumalo
 Khulekani Shezi
 Waleed Al-Shoala
 Muhamed Al-Teket
 Yaser Muzmel
 Dickson Job
 Ashraf Agoro
 Bilal Akoro
 Richard Basangwa
 Rogers Mato
 Travis Mutyaba
 Moses Waiswa
1 own goal
 XXX (against Mauritania)
 Damien Balisson (against Angola)
 Mosa Lebusa (against Angola)
 Peter Meeker (against Ethiopia)
References
- ↑ "Regulations of the African Nations Championship" (PDF). CAF.