Some names make a Pirates supporter sit up straight. RS Berkane is one of them. Four years after that shoot-out in Nigeria, the Moroccans are back in the Buccaneers’ path, and the Pirates CAF group draw in Cairo on Wednesday afternoon has handed the Soweto club a group that will test them from the first whistle.
Pirates were drawn in Group C of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League with Berkane, Simba SC of Tanzania and Colombe Sportive of Cameroon. An hour earlier, also at the Egyptian Football Association headquarters, Durban City learnt who they will face in their first African group: AS FAR of Morocco, Azam FC of Tanzania and Al Ahly Tripoli of Libya, in Group B of the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup.
The Pirates CAF group draw: Berkane, Simba and Colombe
For anyone in black and white, Berkane carries a memory. The two clubs met in the 2022 Confederation Cup final at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo on 20 May 2022. It stayed 1-1 through 120 minutes, and Berkane took the shoot-out 5-4. Now the club that denied them that night stands between Pirates and the quarter-finals.
Simba mean a long trip to Tanzania, and Colombe Sportive complete the group from Cameroon. Two of the four clubs in Group C have to go home in January, and none of them will be easy to put there.
With Mamelodi Sundowns beaten by Wiliete SC of Angola, the Buccaneers now carry South Africa’s hopes in Africa’s top club competition alone. Wiliete’s reward is Group A, alongside Espérance, Petro Atlético and FC Nouadhibou. Pirates earned their own place by beating African Stars of Namibia 5-0 on aggregate, and they come into it off a 3-0 win: they reached the knockout cup quarter-finals by beating Milford 3-0 on Tuesday.
| Champions League | Clubs |
|---|---|
| Group A | Espérance (Tunisia), Petro Atlético (Angola), FC Nouadhibou (Mauritania), Wiliete SC (Angola) |
| Group B | Zamalek (Egypt), Young Africans (Tanzania), MC Alger (Algeria), Club Africain (Tunisia) |
| Group C | RS Berkane (Morocco), Simba SC (Tanzania), Orlando Pirates (South Africa), Colombe Sportive (Cameroon) |
| Group D | Pyramids FC (Egypt), Al Hilal Omdurman (Sudan), Horoya AC (Guinea), MAS de Fès (Morocco) |
Durban City’s first group, and a familiar Moroccan name
Durban City are new to all of this. The Nedbank Cup winners are on their first continental campaign, in the club’s own words, and they reached the group stage by winning 3-0 away to AS Port Louis 2000 for a 6-1 aggregate.
Their reward is a group with real weight at the top. AS FAR were beaten in last season’s Champions League final by Sundowns, 2-1 on aggregate, after a 1-1 draw in Rabat on 24 May. Five months on, another South African club has drawn them. Azam FC add another Tanzanian test, and Al Ahly Tripoli bring the trip to Libya.
There is no time to dwell on it. Eric Tinkler’s side host Stellenbosch in the knockout cup last 16 at Chatsworth Stadium tonight at 19:00, so the squad learnt their African fate a few hours before a cup tie.
| Confederation Cup | Clubs |
|---|---|
| Group A | Al Ahly (Egypt), Raja Club Athletic (Morocco), ASKO de Kara (Togo), Primeiro de Agosto (Angola) |
| Group B | AS FAR (Morocco), Azam FC (Tanzania), Al Ahly Tripoli (Libya), Durban City (South Africa) |
| Group C | Club still to be decided, AS Maniema Union (DR Congo), Singida Black Stars (Tanzania), Red Arrows (Zambia) |
| Group D | USM Alger (Algeria), CS Sfaxien (Tunisia), Black Bulls (Mozambique), AS Real Bamako (Mali) |
Red Arrows, the Zambians who knocked Kaizer Chiefs out on penalties, are in Group C. Al Ahly are in the Confederation Cup this season and land in Group A with Raja.
When the group games are played
CAF’s calendar puts both competitions on the same six weekends: 27 to 29 November, 4 to 6 December and 18 to 20 December, then 8 to 10 January, 15 to 17 January and 22 to 24 January 2027. The top two in each group go through to the quarter-finals, whose first legs are on 26 to 28 February 2027. The exact fixtures, venues and kick-off times are still to be announced, and we will add them when CAF publishes them.
How the tie-breakers and the quarter-final draw work is set out in our explainer on the CAF group stage. For the road here, read our reports on Pirates against Milford and Durban City in Mauritius, and follow both clubs on the Orlando Pirates page and the Durban City page.
Neither club had published a reaction to the draw when this was written.