The only Algerian club still in the CAF Champions League, MC Alger will face Zamalek, Young Africans and Club Africain in Group B. The future of their coach Khaled Ben Yahia remains uncertain.
The draw for the group stages of the 2026/27 CAF Champions League, held on Wednesday 28 October 2026 in Cairo, placed MC Alger in Group B alongside Zamalek SC, Young Africans and Club Africain. A pool that the Algerian press did not hesitate to label a “group of death”, reports La Gazette du Fennec.
The only Algerian representative still in the competition, MCA have been handed three national champions, including Zamalek SC, five-time winners of the competition. A major sporting challenge, while uncertainty surrounds the future of coach Khaled Ben Yahia, who has been reported to be on his way out.
A highly competitive Group B
Besides Egypt’s Zamalek SC, MC Alger will meet Tanzania’s Young Africans and Tunisia’s Club Africain. According to La Gazette du Fennec and RFI, the Algerian club are the only survivors from their country in the competition.
The top two in each group qualify for the quarter-finals, RFI specifies. MCA will therefore have to finish among the top two in their pool to hope to reach that stage.
The other pools are also known. Group A brings together Espérance de Tunis, Petro Atlético, FC Nouadhibou and Wiliete SC; Group C, RS Berkane, Simba SC, Orlando Pirates and Colombe Sportive; Group D, Pyramids FC, Al Hilal Omdurman, Horoya AC and MAS de Fès. In Group C, Orlando Pirates will meet Simba SC, coached by Steve Barker.
Ben Yahia, a future in the balance
Uncertainty hangs over the MC Alger bench. Khaled Ben Yahia, a Tunisian coach, has been reported to be on his way out by La Gazette du Fennec, although his departure has not been confirmed.
A decision on his future is expected as the group stage approaches: it will begin on 27 November 2026.
Sundowns absent, a calendar set
The draw took place at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association in Cairo. Alain Traoré, the former Burkina Faso international invited by CAF as a legend, conducted it.
Mamelodi Sundowns, the defending champions, are the big absentees from this group stage. They were eliminated in the second preliminary round by Angolan club Wiliete SC, after two draws, 0-0 in Lubango and then 1-1 in South Africa, according to ANCAF via AllAfrica.
The group stage will begin on 27 November 2026, with the first matchday spread over three days (27, 28 and 29 November). The sixth and final matchday is scheduled for 22, 23 and 24 January 2027, and the quarter-finals will be held in February 2027.