Nigerian clubs to know CAF opponents on Tuesday

Nigerian clubs to know CAF opponents on Tuesday

Nigeria’s representatives in the 2023/24 CAF Inter Club Competitions – Enyimba, Remo Stars, Rivers United and Bendel Insurance – will know their first opponents when the draw takes place on Tuesday, www.aclsports.com reports.

The draw for the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup preliminary stages has been scheduled to hold at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt which will signal the kick-off of this year’s club competition continental football.

54 clubs from 42 Member Associations, four of them from Nigeria, are engaged in this season’s CAF Champions League, while 52 clubs representing 41 Member Associations will compete in the CAF Confederation Cup.

Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) champions Enyimba and Remo Stars will represent Nigeria in the CAF Champions League, while Rivers United and Federation Cup winners Bendel Insurance will take part in the Confederation Cup.

The preliminary stages draw will be conducted on Tuesday, 25 July 2023 at 14h00 Cairo time (12h00 Nigerian time) starting with the CAF Confederation Cup and followed closely by CAF Champions League across all CAF TV Partners, CAF official website cafonline.com and the official CAF YouTube Channel, CAF TV.

Last season’s finals of both competitions saw record-breaking viewership numbers and attendance, with this trend expected to increase and filter down into the knockout and group stages of both competitions as the appetite for premium African football content continues to be on the rise globally.

Perennial campaigners, Enyimba return to the Champions League, while Remo Stars will be making their debut in the continent’s elite competition. Rivers United reached the quarter-finals of the Confederation Cup last season and will be hoping to go one step further this coming season, on the other hand, Insurance make its first appearance on the continent in almost two decades.

Egypt’s Al Ahly are the current holders of the CAF Champions League after their fiercely contested victory over Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca. At the same time, USM Alger of Algeria holds the CAF Confederation Cup title after overcoming Tanzania’s Young Africans in one of the tournament’s most memorable finals.