October witnessed outstanding performances from three African teams in the qualifiers for the next CAF Africa Cup of Nations, which will take place in Morocco from 21 December 2025, to 12 January 2026.

The national teams of Comoros, Botswana and Angola went through both of their matches undefeated, allowing them to make impressive moves up the rankings. All three member associations have demonstrated effective use of the support offered through various FIFA initiatives, most notably the FIFA Forward programme.

With a historic victory away win against group leaders Tunisia in Tunis and a draw in the return match four days later, Comoros took four points from a possible six to leave themselves second in Group A of the third round of Africa Cup of Nations 2025 qualifiers. Those performances see them just one point behind the top-ranked Eagles of Carthage. As a result, Comoros were the highest climber on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking™ for October, alongside Sudan, advancing a full 10 places.

Highlighting the development of Comorian football in recent years, the Comoros men's national team, who have never participated in a FIFA World Cup™, currently lead Group I of the CAF qualifying competition with nine points from four games, ahead of Ghana on goal difference, following wins over the Central African Republic, Ghana and Chad. They also made an impact on their CAF Africa Cup of Nations debut, reaching the last 16 of the 2021 edition played in Cameroon.

Such progress in football doesn’t happen entirely by chance. FIFA’s support has played a pivotal role in the recent success of the Comoros men's national team. FIFA President Gianni Infantino visited the country in April 2023, meeting with President Azali Assoumani and members of the Comoros Football Federation's executive committee. He also toured the National Technical Centre in Mitsamiouli, which is being renovated with support from the FIFA Forward programme, and helped inaugurate a new natural turf pitch.

FIFA has contributed USD 2.5 million through its Forward Development program, which is being used for the expansion and renovation of the Mitsamiouli Technical Centre, to enhance technical capacities on the islands of Ngazidja, Ndzwani, and Mwali, and to renovate the Stade de Hombo and Stade El Hadj Matoir. In January 2023, Comoros became the first Indian Ocean nation to join the FIFA Football for Schools program, an initiative aimed at harnessing the power of football to educate children and open up life opportunities for them.

After a slow start in the qualifiers, Botswana came back strong in October, defeating Cape Verde 1-0 twice. This secures them second place in Group C with six points, three ahead of their nearest rivals, their October opponents Cape Verde. Botswana are now in a strong position to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations finals for only the second time, following their sole appearance in the 2012 edition, co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.

Thanks to this recent success, Botswana earned the honour of achieving the highest points increase in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking for October, with a gain of +38.30 points. This surge reflects the team's impressive current form, cementing their place in the global standings.

Botswana lie third in Group G of the third round of FIFA World Cup 2026™ qualifiers, trailing leaders Algeria and Mozambique by just three points. Following victories over Guinea and Somalia, the Zebras have set their sights on qualifying for the FIFA World Cup finals for the first time ever.

As in Comoros, FIFA has had a strong presence in Botswana, where the country was among the first member associations to benefit from the FIFA Forward programme. Botswana has inaugurated a new artificial pitch at the Lekidi Football Centre, designed for use by its national teams, clubs, and youth squads, with support from the program. This project was made possible with nearly USD 400,000 in FIFA Forward funding, highlighting the significant role of FIFA's investment in the country's football infrastructure. The FIFA Forward programme also provided almost USD 480,000 to the Botswana Football Association to set up an independent top men’s league, a project that also benefitted from advice from the FIFA Professional Football Department. With FIFA Forward also funding the restart of regional leagues in the country, notably following the COVID-19 pandemic, with a subvention of over USD 297,000 the initiative has been a major catalyst in raising standards nationwide.

Botswana is also one of the countries to have launched the FIFA Football for Schools program, with additional events for the initiative taking place in March of this year. The Football for Schools programme continues to expand globally, having reached halfway towards its mission of making football accessible to both boys and girls. The programme aims to enhance education systems by promoting the values of sport worldwide. Through this initiative, Botswana joins the global effort to combine football and education, ensuring children benefit from both.

In a further development, FIFA, in collaboration with the Government of Botswana and the Botswana Football Association (BFA), recently launched its Talent Development Scheme (TDS) in the country. Under this initiative, selected players are directed to centres of sporting excellence in Radisele and Mogoditshane, with the potential for expansion into other regions.

The FIFA President reaffirmed his belief that Botswanan football will continue on its upward trajectory during his meeting with new BFA President Oabile Tariq Babitseng on the sidelines of the 46th CAF Ordinary General Assembly in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. "With the support of the FIFA Forward Development programme, I am certain he will lead football in Botswana in the right direction and ensure they achieve their goals, including spreading the game to all parts of the country”, said Mr Infantino.

Following a strong showing in the last AFCON in Côte d'Ivoire, where they reached the quarter-finals, Angola’s run of impressive form continued in October as they secured qualification to the Africa Cup of Nations finals on matchday four of six, with back-to-back victories over Niger, 2-0 and 1-0. As a result of these victories, Angola climbed three places in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.

In the qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 2026, Angola are only two points behind leaders Cameroon in Group D, keeping alive their chances of qualifying for the finals for just the second time in their history, following their debut at the FIFA World Cup Germany 2006™. Furthermore, Angola qualified for FIFA Futsal World Cup Uzbekistan 2024™, marking their second consecutive appearance after their debut in the Lithuania 2021 edition.

FIFA has a strong presence in Angola, which has significantly contributed to the development of their national team and their impressive results. This was acknowledged by the President of the Angolan Football Federation after his meeting with FIFA President Gianni Infantino in Paris last July, where he stated, “Thanks to FIFA Forward, we have seen a great evolution, both in terms of the staff involved in football, the performance level of our clubs and the level of performance of the national team.”

In other initiatives, a workshop for clubs was held in the Angolan capital, Luanda, in July 2024 as part of FIFA's Club Professionalisation and Management Programme for Africa. These workshops aim to increase the strength of African clubs, which will help give every talent a chance and to help make football truly global.