The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has issued a key clarification on how the four best second-placed teams will be selected for the next stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, a development that offers Uganda’s Cranes a faint glimmer of hope.
With Tuesday’s final round of group matches confirming the nine nations that have booked their tickets to North America, the qualification journey isn’t quite over for everyone. Africa, now enjoying more slots thanks to the World Cup’s expansion to 48 teams, will still have one more representative determined through the intercontinental playoff. That opportunity will go to one of the four best runners-up across the nine African qualifying groups.
This ruling means several teams, including Cameroon, Gabon, DR Congo, South Africa, Nigeria, and Uganda, remain mathematically in contention despite not topping their respective groups. In Group G, Algeria have already secured direct qualification, but the Cranes are still clinging to hope.
CAF’s ruling on runners-up rankings
CAF confirmed that results against the bottom-placed teams in each group will not count when comparing the second-placed sides.
▶️ Highlight — First training session in Algeria at Stade du 1er Novembre 1954 in Tizi Ouzou yesterday.
The team plays against Algeria on Tuesday 14th October 2025.#ALGUGA | #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/PZ0RpfEpCE
— Uganda Cranes (@UgandaCranes) October 13, 2025
This adjustment follows Eritrea’s withdrawal from Group E, which left that group with fewer fixtures.
To maintain fairness, the governing body decided that each team’s ranking will now be calculated from eight matches, excluding results against the bottom team in every group.
Uganda’s current situation
After applying that deduction, Uganda sit 7th in the provisional runners-up table with 12 points, having lost six points and three goals from their wins over Somalia, who finished last in Group G.
Ahead of them, Gabon top the runners-up standings with 16 points (GD +4), followed by Burkina Faso (15 pts, GD +6), Niger (15 pts, GD +1), and Cameroon (14 pts, GD +9). Burkina Faso and Niger have completed their campaigns, while other contenders still have decisive games to play.
What must Uganda do?
For Uganda to squeeze into the top four, several things need to go their way, starting with a big performance in their final qualifier.
🎙️ Paul Put speaking at the post match press conference after Uganda’s 1-0 win over Botswana.#BOTUGA | #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/mm9kF276v7
— Uganda Cranes (@UgandaCranes) October 11, 2025
The Cranes must defeat Algeria by more than one goal to stand any realistic chance, while also hoping that results elsewhere go in their favour. They’ll need teams like Nigeria and South Africa to drop points, especially if Nigeria defeat Lesotho and South Africa overcome Rwanda, both of which could complicate Uganda’s path.
What Happens Next?
CAF also detailed how the playoffs will unfold. The four best runners-up will converge in Morocco from November 13–16, 2025, for a mini knockout tournament to determine which team advances to the FIFA Intercontinental Play-Off, Africa’s final chance to claim one more World Cup berth.
Seeding for the playoffs will be based on the October 2025 FIFA World Rankings, with the format set as follows:
Team 1 (highest-ranked) vs Team 4 (lowest-ranked)
Team 2 vs Team 3
The semi-final winners will meet in a one-off final, and the champion will represent Africa in the intercontinental playoff for a place at the 2026 World Cup.
Aucho confident Uganda can beat Algeria to keep World Cup dream intact
Match format and rules
All matches will be single-leg affairs, with extra time and penalty shootouts used if necessary.
Teams will be allowed six substitutions, five in normal time and one in extra time.
Bottom line
Uganda’s route to North America remains narrow, but not entirely closed.
The Cranes must beat Algeria convincingly and pray for a perfect storm of results elsewhere. For now, the CAF ruling keeps their World Cup dream flickering, but only just.
