Tunisia triumph as Africa’s World Cup qualifiers resume

Tunisia claimed the headline triumph as Africa’s 2026 Fifa World Cup Qualifiers resumed with five matches across the continent on Wednesday evening.

A late penalty from Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane saw them defeat Equatorial Guinea 1-0 in the late kick-off in Tunis.

It was the Carthage Eagles’ third win from as many matches in Group H and saw them open a two-point lead at the top of the standings.

In the early-evening matches, Sierra Leone secured their first win in Group A by defeating minnows Djibouti 2-1 in El Jadida, thanks to goals from Curtis Davies and Augustus Kargbo (either side of an equaliser from Gabriel Dadzie).

Central Africa Republic had the same achievement in Group I, as they edged Chad 1-0 in Oujda, courtesy of Venuste Baboula’s first-half strike.

Namibia and Liberia shared the spoils in Johannesburg, drawing 1-1 in their Group H match after goals from Tjipenandjambi Karuuombe and Terry Sackor respectively, while Togo were held 1-1 in Lome by Group B rivals Liberia.

The hosts claimed the lead through Khaled Narey, but were pegged back by an own goal from Roger Aholou.

Poor Aholou cannot get a break at the moment, having also scored an own goal in the recent CAF Champions League final which saw his team, Esperance de Tunis, lose 1-0 on aggregate to Al Ahly.

The World Cup Qualifiers will continue on Thursday 6 June with nine matches across the continent, headlined by Algeria hosting Guinea, a West African derby between Mali and Ghana in Bamako, and a potential thriller between Senegal and DR Congo.

African #WCQ sure did not disappoint on the first day back. 👊 pic.twitter.com/KsXodGkXlG

— CAF (@CAF_Online) June 5, 2024

CAF WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS RESULTS

Wednesday 5 June

Sierra Leone 2-1 Djibouti

Togo 1-1 South Sudan

Namibia 1-1 Liberia

Central African Republic 1-0 Chad

Tunisia 1-0 Equatorial Guinea