Nigeria vs South Africa Top as Race for Cameroon 2019 Begins

Nigeria hosting South Africa in Group E is the standout fixture as 47 countries begin the group stage of qualifying for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

Another big clash this weekend is the North African clash between Tunisia and Egypt in Group J.

The 12 group winners will qualify along with the best three runners-up will join hosts Cameroon in the finals.

South Africa are looking for a first win ever win in a competitive match over Nigeria, there have been six wins for the Super Eagles and three draws since 1992.

The Super Eagles are aiming to qualify for the Nations Cup finals for the first time since winning the title in 2013.

Here are the fixtures for the 2019 Nations Cup qualifiers (all times GMT)

Friday:          Grp L: Cape Verde v Uganda (1730)

Grp A: Sudan v Madagascar (1900) Grp G: DR Congo v Congo (1730)

Grp E: Libya v Seychelles (2000)       Grp I: Burkina Faso v Angola (1800)

Saturday:     Grp C: Mali v Gabon (1900)

Grp B: Malawi v Comoros (1230)     Grp A: Senegal v Equatorial Guinea (2000)

Grp C: Burundi v South Sudan (1300)        Grp H: Ivory Coast v Guinea (2000)

Grp K: Zambia v Mozambique (1300)         Sunday:

Grp I: Botswana v Mauritania (1330)         Grp G: Zimbabwe v Liberia (1300)

Grp B: Cameroon v Morocco (1400)            Grp H: CAR v Rwanda (1400)

Grp J: Niger v Swaziland (1500)        Grp D: Benin v The Gambia (1500)

Grp K: Guinea-Bissau v Namibia (1600)    Grp F: Ghana v Ethiopia (1530)

Grp E: Nigeria v South Africa (1600)           Grp D: Algeria v Togo (2100)

Grp F: Sierra Leone v Kenya (1630) Grp J: Tunisia v Egypt (2200)

Grp L: Tanzania v Lesotho (1700)

And here is a fact

For Group B:

Cameroon qualify automatically as hosts and play as Defending Champions

All matches against Cameroon will count leading to three possibilities:

1: If Cameroon win the group, the runner-up will automatically qualify to the final tournament. No other team will be eligible to qualify from this group.

2: If Cameroon are runners-up, only the winner of the group will qualify to the final tournament.

3: If Cameroon are either 3rd or 4th, the winner of the group qualifies to the final tournament and the runner-up will be eligible to qualify as one of the best runners-up