The CAF first preliminary round, the first matches on the road to Brazil 2027, was played WED 19-WED 26 FEB 2025. Fourteen teams claimed their places in the next round.

Kenya advanced with a 1-0 aggregate win over Tunisia, as goalkeeper Lilian AWUOR saved two penalties in the second leg. Egypt defeated Rwanda 3-2 on aggregate, aiming to reach the Women’s African Nations Cup for the first time in ten years. Elsewhere, Ethiopia eliminated Uganda on penalties after both sides won 2-0 at home.

The second preliminary round will be played in OCT 2025. Six teams – Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, and Zambia – earned a bye to that round. The eleven winners will join host nation Morocco at next year’s Women’s African Nations Cup, where CAF’s four places at the Women’s World Cup and two places in the playoffs will be decided.

• First preliminary round [series aggregate results]
  • Series 1: Angola 04-03 Zimbabwe
  • Series 2: Congo withdrew; Malawi advance
  • Series 3: Botswana 00-02 Congo DR
  • Series 4: Tanzania 04-02 Equatorial Guinea
  • Series 5: Uganda 02-02 Ethiopia [away: 00-00; F/OT; pen: 04-05]
  • Series 6: Eswatini 00-04 Namibia
  • Series 7: Burundi 01-05 Burkina Faso
  • Series 8: Djibouti 00-10 Togo
  • Series 9: South Sudan 00-08 Algeria
  • Series 10: Rwanda 02-03 Egypt
  • Series 11: Kenya 01-00 Tunisia
  • Series 12: Niger 01-04 Gambia
  • Series 13: Benin 05-02 Sierra Leone
  • Series 14: Guinea 03-06 Cabo Verde
  • Series 15: Gabon 01-10 Mali
  • Series 16: Chad withdrew; Senegal advance
• Second preliminary round
  • Series 1: Angola v Malawi
  • Series 2: Congo DR v South Africa
  • Series 3: Tanzania v Ethiopia
  • Series 4: Namibia v Zambia
  • Series 5: Burkina Faso v Togo
  • Series 6: Algeria v Cameroon
  • Series 7: Egypt v Ghana
  • Series 8: Kenya v Gambia
  • Series 9: Benin v Nigeria
  • Series 10: Cabo Verde v Mali
  • Series 11: Senegal v Côte d’Ivoire