Uganda’s Sand Cranes staged a spirited comeback to draw 4-4 with Burundi, while Angola, Côte d’Ivoire and Malawi secured first-leg victories as the second round of the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Beach Soccer qualifiers got underway.
The opening matches, played between October 9 and 11, produced a mixture of comebacks, narrow victories and evenly contested encounters as seven teams battle for places at the continental finals scheduled for Senegal in November.
Uganda’s comeback was one of the standout performances of the round after the Sand Cranes recovered from three goals down to earn a valuable away draw against Burundi on Saturday.
Captain Sharif Opuuli and Jonah Mugisha scored twice each to rescue Uganda, who had fallen behind 1-0 in the opening period before trailing 4-3 at the end of the second.
The Ugandans responded in the third period to force a 4-4 draw and keep their qualification hopes alive ahead of the return leg at Bamboo Gardens in Kasanje on October 18.
Elsewhere, Angola defeated Egypt 4-2 to establish a two-goal advantage before the return leg, while Côte d’Ivoire edged Mauritania 3-2 in another closely contested encounter.
Malawi produced one of the most convincing performances of the opening round, beating Seychelles 6-2 away from home to take a commanding four-goal cushion into the return fixture.
Tanzania and Mozambique shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw, leaving their qualification battle finely balanced ahead of the second leg.
Morocco also made a strong statement on the road, defeating Libya 4-2 in Benghazi on Friday to put themselves in a favourable position before the return match.
Meanwhile, Nigeria and Ghana played out a 3-3 draw in Kaduna. Nigeria’s Isa Hamza Manga scored a hat-trick, while Ghana responded through Mawuli Sosu, who scored twice, and Wise Nyamadi.
The results leave several ties delicately poised, although Malawi, Morocco and Angola will take confidence from their away victories as they prepare for the decisive return fixtures.
The second leg matches are scheduled for October 16-18, with Egypt hosting Angola, Morocco welcoming Libya, Mauritania facing Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique taking on Tanzania, Malawi meeting Seychelles, Uganda hosting Burundi and Ghana facing Nigeria.
The seven aggregate winners will qualify for the AFCON Beach Soccer finals in Senegal, scheduled for November 7-15, 2026, joining hosts and defending champions Senegal.
For Uganda, the focus now shifts to Kasanje, where the Sand Cranes must build on their fighting spirit and deliver a winning performance to move closer to continental qualification.