The 2020–21 CAF Confederation Cup qualifying rounds were played from 27 November 2020 to 21 February 2021.[1][2] A total of 67 teams are competing in the qualifying rounds to decide the 16 places in the group stage of the 2020–21 CAF Confederation Cup.[3]
Draw
The draw for the qualifying rounds was held on 9 November 2020 at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.[4][5]
The entry round of the 51 teams entered into the draw was determined by their performances in the CAF competitions for the previous five seasons (CAF 5-year ranking points shown in parentheses).
In the qualifying rounds, each tie will be played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score is tied after the second leg, the away goals rule will be applied, and if still tied, extra time will not be played, and the penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winner (Regulations III. 13 & 14).[3]
^TAS Casablanca won on a walkover after GAMTEL withdrew from the second leg in Morocco citing financial constraints.[6]
^Namungo won on walkover after Al Rabita were disqualified by CAF due to violation of regulations from the club and the South Sudan Football Association.[7]
^Sagrada Esperança won on walkover after the Eswatini Football Association was not able to confirm the engagement of their representative in the CAF Confederation Cup by the CAF deadline.[8][9]
Namungo won on walkover after Al Rabita were disqualified by CAF due to violation of regulations from the club and the South Sudan Football Association.[7]
3–3 on aggregate. Rivers United won 2–0 on penalties.
First round
The first round, also called the second preliminary round, will include 32 teams: the 13 teams that received byes to this round, and the 19 winners of the preliminary round.
^Renaissance failed to appear for the first leg in N'Djamena following disputes between the Ministry of Youth and Sports in the country and the Chadian Football Federation, which prevented the club from playing the match in their home country. As a result, Renaissance were disqualified from the competition by CAF, and ES Sétif won on walkover.[10]
^Orlando Pirates won on a walkover after Sagrada Esperança withdrew from the second leg in South Africa citing health concerns caused due to the new COVID-19 variant.[11]
^The first round first leg match between AS Kigali and KCCA could not be played after 2 of the 15 players from KCCA tested positive for COVID-19. Thus, KCCA were not able to name the required 15 players for holding the match, and subsequently, AS Kigali were awarded a technical 2–0 victory for the first leg by CAF in accordance with the regulations related to COVID-19.[12]
Orlando Pirates won on walkover after Sagrada Esperança withdrew from the second leg in South Africa citing health concerns caused due to the new COVID-19 variant.[11]
The play-off round, also called the additional second preliminary round, includes 32 teams: the 16 winners of the Confederation Cup first round, and the 16 losers of the Champions League first round.
The draw for the play-off round was held on 8 January 2021, 12:00 GMT (14:00 local time, UTC+2), at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.[13][14]
The teams were seeded by their performances in the CAF competitions for the previous five seasons (CAF 5-year ranking points shown in parentheses):[15][16]
Pot A contained the 7 seeded losers of the Champions League first round.
Pot B contained the 7 unseeded winners of the Confederation Cup first round.
Pot C contained the 8 unseeded losers of the Champions League first round.
Pot D contained the 8 seeded winners of the Confederation Cup first round.
Teams from Pot A were drawn against teams from Pot B into seven ties, and teams from Pot C were drawn against teams from Pot D into eight ties.
The 15 winners of the play-off round will advance to the group stage to join RS Berkane, who advanced directly to the group stage as the winners of the first round with the best CAF 5-year ranking following Gazelle withdrawal from the competition after being transferred from the Champions League.
^ abcdTeams from Libya play their home matches outside the country due to security concerns from the ongoing civil war.
^Teams from Somalia played their home matches outside the country due to security concerns from the ongoing civil war.
^Teams from South Sudan played their home matches outside the country due to renovation of Juba Stadium.
^The first round first leg match between AS Kigali and KCCA could not be played after 2 of the 15 players from KCCA tested positive for COVID-19. Thus, KCCA were not able to name the required 15 players for holding the match, and subsequently, AS Kigali were awarded a technical 2–0 victory for the first leg by CAF in accordance with the regulations related to COVID-19.[12]
^The identity of the winners of the tie between Rivers United and Bloemfontein Celtic was not known at the time of the draw, as their CAF Confederation Cup first round second leg fixture was postponed and not played before the draw.
