Here's how I predict the final points will be for each group after October. I will post the schedule once they decide on dates (Africa is notoriously later with their scheduling, since travel is trickier)

Team - Predicted Final Points (Current Points)

Group A

Egypt - 26 (20)

Burkina Faso - 19 (15)

Sierra Leone - 16 (12)

Guinea-Bissau - 11 (10)

Ethiopia - 7 (6)

Djibouti - 1 (1)

Group B

Senegal - 24 (18)

Congo DR - 18 (16)

Sudan - 16 (12)

Togo - 9 (7)

Mauritania - 6 (6)

South Sudan - 5 (4)

Group C

South Africa - 21 (17)

Benin - 16 (14)

Nigeria - 15 (11)

Rwanda - 12 (11)

Lesotho - 9 (6)

Zimbabwe - 5 (4)

Group D

Cape Verde - 23 (19)

Cameroon - 21 (15)

Libya - 18 (14)

Angola - 13 (10)

Mauritius - 5 (5)

Eswatini - 2 (2)

Group E

Morocco - 24 (21)

Tanzania - 13 (10)

Niger - 13 (9)

Zambia - 7 (6)

Congo - 1 (1)

Group F

Ivory Coast - 26 (20)

Gabon - 23 (19)

Gambia - 14 (10)

Burundi - 11 (10)

Kenya - 10 (9)

Seychelles - 0 (0)

Group G

Algeria - 25 (19)

Mozambique - 21 (15)

Uganda - 16 (15)

Guinea - 12 (11)

Botswana - 11 (9)

Somalia - 1 (1)

Group H

Tunisia - 28 (22)

Namibia - 16 (15)

Malawi - 14 (10)

Liberia - 13 (11)

Equatorial Guinea - 12 (10)

Sao Tome e Principe - 0 (0)

Group I

Ghana - 21 (19)

Comoros - 19 (15)

Mali - 18 (12)

Madagascar - 16 (16)

Central African Republic - 7 (5)

Chad - 2 (1)

In this scenario, qualified:

Egypt

Senegal

South Africa

Cape Verde

Morocco

Ivory Coast

Algeria

Tunisia

Ghana

Playoff:

Gabon

Mozambique

Cameroon

Burkina Faso (goal differential over Comoros)

Knew Kosovo of course and Gibraltar but not the South Sudan one!

1 hour ago, Steve201 said:

Knew Kosovo of course and Gibraltar but not the South Sudan one!

Oh yes I knew I was forgetting one but Yes Gibraltar is also new.

Africa finally has their October matches scheduled -- the final ones of the first round to determine the 9 automatic World Cup qualifiers.

Group A

10/8 - Ethiopia vs. Guinea-Bissau [Kigali, Rwanda]

10/8 - Djibouti vs. Egypt [Casablanca, Morocco]

10/8 - Sierra Leone vs. Burkina Faso [Paynesville, Liberia]*

10/12 - Burkina Faso vs. Ethiopia [Ouagadougou]

10/12 - Djibouti vs. Sierra Leone [Casablanca, Morocco]

10/12 - Egypt vs. Guinea-Bissau [Cairo]

*If Sierra Leone were to win this, they would be tied (for second) on points going into the last match day but would likely still be far behind on goal differential. (Right now it's+12 to +2 in favor of Burkina Faso)

Group B

10/10 - South Sudan vs. Senegal [Juba]

10/10 - Togo vs. Congo DR [Lome]

10/10 - Sudan vs. Mauritania [Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania]

10/13 - South Sudan vs. Togo [Juba]

10/14 - Congo DR vs. Sudan [Kinshasa]*

10/14 - Senegal vs. Mauritania [Diamniadio]*

*These matches could decide first place, depending on how their 10/10 matches go. Congo DR needs to at least stay within reach (currently 2 points behind)

Group C

10/10 - Rwanda vs. Benin [Kigali]

10/10 - Lesotho vs. Nigeria [Polokwane, South Africa]*

10/10 - Zimbabwe vs. South Africa [Durban, South Africa]

10/13 - Lesotho vs. Zimbabwe [Polokwane, South Africa]

10/14 - South Africa vs. Rwanda [Mbombela]

10/14 - Nigeria vs. Benin [Uyo]*

*There's a world where Nigeria wins both these matches and overtakes Benin for second place, from the depths of hell they could save face. South Africa will almost certainly clinch first place on either match day.

Group D

10/8 - Mauritius vs. Cameroon [Saint Pierre]

10/8 - Libya vs. Cape Verde [Tripoli]

10/8 - Eswatini vs. Angola [Lobamba]

10/13 - Cape Verde vs. Eswatini [Praia]*

10/13 - Mauritius vs. Libya [Saint Pierre]

10/13 - Cameroon vs. Angola [Yaounde]*

*If Cape Verde wins at Libya, which won't be easy, it's clinched. If not, it will come to the final match day, Cape Verde just has to win either game to clinch, even two draws won't secure it outright unless they get help from Cameroon. If Cameroon falls flat on their face, Libya could sneak up to second place.

Group E

10/8 - Niger vs. Congo [Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso]*

10/8 - Tanzania vs. Zambia [Zanzibar City]

10/12 - Zambia vs. Niger [Ndola]*

10/14 - Morocco vs. Congo [Rabat]

*Niger has the benefit of two matches to Tanzania's one. If they get at least 2 more points from those than Tanzania gets, then Niger moves into second. Of course, CAF/FIFA will have to make a determination on how their second place rankings will be resolved without this group losing out on Eritrea's matches.

Group F

10/9 - Burundi vs. Kenya [Bujumbura]

10/10 - Seychelles vs. Ivory Coast [Saint Pierre, Mauritius]

10/10 - Gambia vs. Gabon [Nairobi. Kenya]*

10/14 - Seychelles vs. Gambia [Saint Pierre, Mauritius]

10/14 - Gabon vs. Burundi [Franceville, Gabon]*

10/14 - Ivory Coast vs. Kenya [Abidjan]*

*Gabon will have to win vs. Gambia, thankfully at a neutral site, in order to have a chance. Ivory Coast has the African equivalent of a San Marino match. Then the final day will have to hope Kenya comes through for them while they win their match. Otherwise, it will be Ivory Coast in first and Gabon in second. At least Gabon will know they are likely clinched as a playoff team with their points. (19 points now)

Group G

10/9 - Somalia vs. Algeria [Bir El Djir, Algeria]

10/9 - Mozambique vs. Guinea [Maputo]*

10/9 - Botswana vs. Uganda [Francistown]*

10/14 - Guinea vs. Botswana [Casablanca, Morocco]

10/14 - Somalia vs. Mozambique [Bir El Djir, Algeria]*

10/14 - Algeria vs. Uganda [Tizi Ouzou]*

*Algeria will likely clinch after the Somalia match, so the battle is for second place. Mozambique has the inside track, considering they have a home match. Both have 15 points right now, but Uganda has the goal differential, so Mozambique has to do better in their two matches.

Group H

10/9 - Malawi vs. Equatorial Guinea [Lilongwe]

10/9 - Liberia vs. Namibia [Paynesville]*

10/9 - Sao Tome e Principe vs. Tunisia [Tunis, Tunisia]

10/13 - Equatorial Guinea vs. Liberia [Malabo]

10/13 - Sao Tome e Principe vs. Malawi [Sousse, Tunisia]

10/13 - Tunisia vs. Namibia [Tunis]*

*Liberia, Malawi, and Equatorial Guinea sitting there ready to pounce for second place, if Namibia have trouble with these two away tilts.

Group I

10/8 - Chad vs. Mali [N'Djamena]

10/8 - Central African Republic vs. Ghana [El Jadida, Morocco]

10/8 - Comoros vs. Madagascar [Abidjan, Ivory Coast]*

10/12 - Chad vs. Central African Republic [N'Djamena]

10/12 - Ghana vs. Comoros [Accra]*

10/12 - Mali vs. Madagascar [Bamako]*

*I think Ghana has this, but you never know. I've seen them lose points in a match like away to C.A.R. before. If that were to occur, this becomes interesting if either Madagascar or Comoros win that match. Obviously, both have extremely tough final matches, including if Comoros were to win and then go to Ghana. I think having either island nation do enough to make the playoffs will be exciting enough.

Edited September 29Sep 29 by DJHazey

It has been decided by FIFA that South Africa fielded an ineligible player against Lesotho on 3/21, a match that originally ended as 2-0 to South Africa and is now 3-0 to Lesotho.

The updated standing of Group C:

Benin - 4-2-2 - 14pts - +4

South Africa - 4-2-2 - 14 pts - +3

Nigeria - 2-5-1 - 11 pts - +2

Rwanda - 3-2-3 - 11pts - 0

Lesotho - 2-3-3 - 9pts - -3

Zimbabwe - 0-4-4 - 4pts - -6

Do I think South Africa still wins the group? Yes, because they have a favorable remaining schedule compared to Benin, but this certainly makes thing far less elementary, obviously.

Edited September 30Sep 30 by DJHazey

Wow, that does shake things up a bit!

Damn, Cape Verde really left it late in Libya today, they were down 3-1 early in the second half but came all the way back to rescue a 3-3. Not that it makes any difference since Cameroon expectedly won in Mauritius. Cape Verde still needs a W at home versus Eswatini on Monday either way. They'll need to play better from the get-go than they did today.

In Group I:

Ghana 5-0 at Central African Republic

Madagascar 2-1 at Comoros

Ghana 22 pts, Madagascar 19 pts

Everyone else, including Mali and Comoros is eliminated.

Ghana just needs 1 point to qualify, which they will more than likely get against Comoros at home.

Madagascar is at Mali. Looking at the playoff table for second place teams, 19 points could be enough but getting anything else in a tough game will certainly help their chances.

Edited October 8Oct 8 by DJHazey

Matchday 9 - Wednesday

Group A

Ethiopia 1-0 Guinea-Bissau

Djibouti 0-3 Egypt

Sierra Leona 0-1 Burkina Faso

Group D

Eswatini 2-2 Angola

Libya 3-3 Cape Verde

Mauritius 0-2 Cameroon

Group I

Central African Republic 0-5 Ghana

Chad 0-2 Mali

Comoros 1-2 Madagascar

Egypt become the third African nation to qualify. Cape Verde actually scored an extra-time winner that would have seen them qualify but the linesman inexplicably gave it offside.

Dodgy fifa refs!

Matchday 9 - Thursday

Group F

Burundi 0-1 Kenya

Group G

Botswana 0-2 Uganda

Mozambique 1-2 Guinea

Somalia 0-3 Algeria

Group H

Liberia 3-1 Namibia

Malawi C-C Equatorial Guinea

Algeria make it 4/4 for north African qualifiers so far.

Malawi v Equatorial Guinea was cancelled as the away team refused to travel. The Equatorial Guinea FA have already suspended the manager for the decision

All groups are down to one match after today, let's review qualifying scenarios and playoff situation:

Group A - Egypt qualified

Group B - Senegal 21, Congo DR 19*

Group C - Benin 17, South Africa 15, Nigeria 14**

Group D - Cape Verde 20, Cameroon 18***

Group E - Morocco qualified

Group F - Ivory Coast 23, Gabon 22****

Group G - Algeria qualified

Group H - Tunisia qualified

Group I - Ghana 22, Madagascar 19*****

*Senegal hosts Mauritania and Congo DR hosts Sudan. The only way Congo DR advances over Senegal is if Senegal were to lose while Congo DR wins. Likely Senegal.

**With the points reduction, South Africa has officially lost their lead. Benin travels to Nigeria, while South Africa hosts Rwanda. South Africa needs to win by three goals to have a chance if Nigeria and Benin draw or just win by any result if Nigeria wins. If South Africa win by two then it will come down to total goals scored in the Nigeria/Benin draw scenario! If Nigeria wins, they need South Africa to lose or draw. If Benin wins, they clinch. Crazy stuff, buckle up! I think all neutrals would love to see Benin pull this off! Can't call this one yet.

***Pretty simple. Cape Verde wins, they clinch. If Cape Verde draw, Cameroon can win or draw since goal differential is +12 to +5 currently in favor of Cameroon. If Cape Verde loses, then Cameroon has to lose to keep Cape Verde on top. I expect Cape Verde wins the home game vs. Eswatini, since it's the biggest match in the nations' history, but that's also where you can freeze up.

****Ivory Coast hosts Kenya while Gabon hosts Burundi, both likely wins, which is why I am saying this goes to Ivory Coast. If Ivory Coast trips up with a loss or draw, they'll need Gabon to do have less than a win themselves.

*****Ghana hosts Comoros, while Madagascar travels to Mali. This is probably the most elementary one here, even if Madagascar won and Ivory Coast lost, which is unthinkable enough, the goal differential would have to change hands by 9 goals between them! Almost 100% Ghana.

Playoff Standings

CAF/FIFA finally decided to deal with Group E losing its matches vs. Eritrea (who withdrew before this round started), all groups would not count their results vs. the last-placed team to compensate.

Gabon 16 (hosts Burundi)

Cameroon 14 (hosts Angola)

Congo DR 13 (hosts Sudan)

Madagascar 13 (travels to Mali)

________________

Burkina Faso 12 (hosts Ethiopia)

Uganda 12 (travels to Algeria)

Niger 12 (travels to Zambia)

Nigeria 12 (hosts Benin)

South Africa 11 (hosts Rwanda)

Namibia 9 (travels to Tunisia)

I think Gabon is set and Cameroon and Congo DR should be fine, Madagascar probably won't hold that spot, so I think Burkina Faso slides in.

Edited October 10Oct 10 by DJHazey

Matchday 9 - Friday

Group B

South Sudan 0-5 Senegal

Sudan 0-0 Mauritiania

Togo 0-1 DR Congo

Group C

Lesotho 1-2 Nigeria

Rwanda 0-1 Benin

Zimbabwe 0-0 South Africa

Group F

Gambia 3-4 Gabon

Seychelles 0-7 Ivory Coast

Group H

São Tomé and Príncipe 0-6 Tunisia

Matchday 9 - Tables

 

Group A

1. Egypt 9/10 (+17) 23

2. Burkina Faso 9/10 (+13) 18

3. Sierra Leonne 9/10 (+1) 12

4. Guinea-Bissau 9/10 (-1) 10

5. Ethiopia 9/10 (-3) 9

6. Djibouti 9/10 (-27) 1

 

Group B

1. Senegal 9/10 (+15) 21

2. DR Congo 9/10 (+8) 19

3. Sudan 9/10 (+3) 13

4. Togo 9/10 (-5) 7

5. Mauritania 9/10 (-5) 7

6. South Sudan 9/10 (-16) 4

 

Group C

1. Benin 9/10 (+5) 17

2. South Africa 9/10 (+3) 15

3. Nigeria 9/10 (+3) 14

4. Rwanda 9/10 (-1) 11

5. Lesotho 9/10 (-4) 9

6. Zimbabwe 9/10 (-6) 5

 

Group D

1. Cape Verde 9/10 (+5) 20

2. Cameroon 9/10 (+12) 18

3. Libya 9/10 (+2) 15

4. Angola 9/10 (+1) 11

5. Mauritius 9/10 (-10) 5

6. Eswatini 9/10 (-10) 3

 

Group E

1. Morocco 7/8 (+19) 21

2. Niger 7/8 (0) 12

3. Tanzania 8/8 (-1) 10

4. Zambia 7/8 (+1) 9

5. Congo 7/8 (-19) 1

 

Group F

1. Ivory Coast 9/10 (+22) 23

2. Gabon 9/10 (+11) 22

3. Kenya 9/10 (+7) 12

4. Gambia 9/10 (+2) 10

5. Burundi 9/10 (+2) 10

6. Seychelles 9/10 (-44) 0

 

Group G

1. Algeria 9/10 (+15) 22

2. Uganda 9/10 (+6) 18

3. Mozambique 9/10 (-4) 15

4. Guinea 9/10 (+3) 14

5. Botswana 9/10 (-4) 9

6. Somalia 9/10 (-16) 1

 

Group H

1. Tunisia 9/10 (+19) 25

2. Namibia 9/10 (+6) 15

3. Liberia 9/10 (+2) 14

4. Malawi 8/10 (-1) 10

5. Equatorial Guinea 8/10 (-4) 10

6. São Tomé and Príncipe 8/10 (-22) 0

 

Group I

1. Ghana 9/10 (+16) 22

2. Madagascar 9/10 (+8) 19

3. Mali 9/10 (+8) 15

4. Comoros 9/10 (0) 15

5. Central African Republic 9/10 (-14) 5

6. Chad 9/10 (-18) 1

After Matchday 9

 

Qualification:

 

Algeria

Benin

Cape Verde

Egypt

Ghana

Ivory Coast

Morocco

Senegal

Tunisia

 

Play-Offs:

 

Cameroon

DR Congo

Gabon

Madagascar

5 more places up for grabs on the final matchday!

Matchday 10 - Sunday

Group A

Burkina Faso 3-1 Ethiopia

Djibouti 1-2 Sierra Leone

Egypt 1-0 Guinea-Bissau

Group E

Zambia 0-1 Niger

Group I

Chad 2-3 Central African Republic

Ghana 1-0 Comoros

Mali 4-1 Madagascar

Ghana become the first non-North African team to qualify from the continent.

Matchday 10 - Monday

Group B

South Sudan 0-0 Togo

Group C

Lesotho 1-0 Zimbabwe

Group D

Cameroon 0-0 Angola

Cape Verde 3-0 Eswatini

Mauritius 0-0 Libya

Group H

Equatorial Guinea 1-1 Liberia

São Tomé and Príncipe 1-0 Malawi

Tunisia 3-0 Namibia

Congrats to Cape Verde who are going to their first ever World Cup!!!

2 qualifiers in two days that couldn't even qualify for the AFCON in January

Delighted at Cape Verde making it in - was very worried they were going to bottle it after being so far in front so glad they've finished well.

Many congratulations to Cape Verde on qualifying for their first World Cup.

Go Cape Verdi!!

Bring Henrik Larson out of retirement to ply for them!!