FIFA have announced the pots to be used in the draw for the CAF group phase of 2018 Men’s World Cup qualifiers. Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, and Tunisia have been placed in the highest pot. However, the announcement comes amidst a sequence of protests and counterprotests.

FIFA originally announced that the seeds would be based upon a revised ranking published after the Men’s African Nations Cup qualifiers played on FRI 03-SUN 05 JUN 2016. When these rankings were released on TUE 07 JUN 2016, Egypt reportedly protested at having dropped to the second pot.

A new set of rankings was then issued on TUE 21 JUN 2016, with Egypt taking the place of Tunisia in Pot 1. Following further protests by Tunisia and other nations that had dropped, FIFA announced that an emergency bureau had convened, deciding to restore the initial rankings.

The draw will be held in Cairo on FRI 24 JUN 2016. One team from each pot will be placed in each of the five groups. The teams will play one another twice from OCT 2016-NOV 2017, and the group winners will qualify for Russia 2018.

• Pot 1: Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Tunisia
• Pot 2: Cabo Verde, Congo DR, Egypt, Mali, Nigeria
• Pot 3: Cameroon, Congo, Guinea, Morocco, South Africa
• Pot 4: Burkina Faso, Gabon, Libya, Uganda, Zambia