Red Arrows know most of their opponents. The draw for the group stage of the 2026/27 TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup, held in Cairo on Wednesday 28 October, placed the Zambian champions in Group C with AS Maniema Union of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Singida Black Stars of Tanzania, CAF announced in a statement carried by AllAfrica and ZamFoot reported. The fourth team is not yet known: CAF says CR Belouizdad of Algeria, AS Douanes of Mauritania and Hafia of Guinea are competing for a place still to be confirmed, which the reports attribute to an outstanding qualifying matter rather than a replay.
It is the first time the Lusaka club has reached the group phase of the competition, ZamFoot noted. They got there by holding Kaizer Chiefs of South Africa to a 1–1 aggregate draw and winning the penalty shoot-out.
The other groups
Group A has Al Ahly of Egypt, Raja Casablanca of Morocco, ASKO Kara of Togo and Primeiro de Agosto of Angola. Group B has Morocco's Royal Armed Forces, Tanzania's Azam, Libya's Al Ahly Tripoli and South Africa's Durban City. Group D has USM Alger, CS Sfaxien of Tunisia, Black Bulls of Mozambique and Real Bamako of Mali. The first round of group matches is on the weekend of 27 to 29 November, the last at the end of January 2027, and the top two in each group go to the quarter-finals in February. ZamFoot called Arrows' group competitive but not insurmountable.
Where they will play
Arrows' home matches depend on the stadium question. ZamFoot reported on Thursday that CAF has given the National Heroes Stadium in Lusaka temporary Category 3 approval for November, after an assessment from 19 to 22 October, covering the national team's Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Burundi on 13 November and the under-23s' Olympic qualifier against Burkina Faso on 15 November, while raising concerns the association must address before a further assessment. FAZ general secretary Charles Chakatazya said the assessment confirmed the stadium meets the key requirements for CAF and FIFA matches. Whether the approval extends to Arrows' first home group match at the end of November was not addressed in the reports seen. Match dates and venues for Group C have not been published.
Sources: CAF via AllAfrica, “TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup 2026/27 Group Stage Draw Produces Exciting Encounters” (29 Oct 2026); ZamFoot, “Red Arrows handed manageable draw in CAF Confederation Cup Group C” (28 Oct 2026); ZamFoot, “CAF grants National Heroes Stadium temporary approval for November matches” (29 Oct 2026).