The opening round will set the tone before the competition pauses for AFCON in December and January.
Pyramids v Rivers United headlines Group A in Cairo. Krunoslav Jurčić’s side arrive buoyed by a Super Cup win and a rising spine built around goalkeeper Ahmed El-Shenawy, Walid El Karti and striker Fiston Mayele.
They will be without Ramadan Sobhi, Osama Galal and Mostafa Fathi, but expectations remain high after last season’s title. Rivers travel with defensive resilience and revived attacking confidence.
“I’m quite happy that we have scored two; maybe by the next game we can score three… Let’s take it one game at a time. We just have to enjoy this now and focus on Pyramids,” said coach Finidi George after a morale-boosting league win.
In the group’s other fixture, RS Berkane — TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup kings turned Botola champions — host Zambia’s Power Dynamos in a Group A reunion that will also revive their rivalry with Pyramids later in the round-robin.
Group B looks the toughest on paper. Record 12-time winners Al Ahly open at home to JS Kabylie in Cairo.
Jess Thorup’s Ahly, fresh from winning the Egyptian Super Cup, lean on star arrivals such as Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane and the experience of Ashraf Bencharki and Taher Mohamed. Fitness doubts linger over Ahmed “Zizo” Mostafa and Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, while Hussein El-Shahat and Achraf Dari remain sidelined.
Josef Zinnbauer’s JSK travel with attacking threat through Aymen Mahious and Zinedine Belaïd.
The section’s other match sends AS FAR to Dar es Salaam to face Young Africans — a meeting of recent continental finalists and quarter-finalists. Under Pedro Gonçalves, Yanga’s intensity makes this a genuine 50–50 contest.
There is subplot galore in Group C. Al-Hilal (based in Kigali) meet MC Alger in a coaching storyline rich with intrigue: Rulani Mokwena, once the face of Sundowns’ rise, now leads league-topping MCA and seeks a statement result against fellow North African heavyweights.
Hilal counter with veteran forward Mohamed Abdelrahman and Mauritania international Guessouma Fofana.
On Saturday in Pretoria, Sundowns begin against St Éloi Lupopo, the Congolese side that stunned Orlando Pirates in qualifying.
“We need a clear focus on winning competitions… we’ll be loyal to ourselves… the next match is the most important match of our lives,” said Downs boss Miguel Cardoso, brushing aside talk of “obsession” while embracing the pressure to finally add a second star.
Group D opens with continental pedigree. Four-time champions Espérance host Stade Malien in Tunis.
EST absorb a major blow with Youcef Belaïli’s ACL injury but retain quality through Houssem Tka, Mohamed Amine Ben Hamida and Algerian livewire Wassila Boualia, while veteran Youcef Msakni is drafted back to steady the front line.
In the group’s parallel fixture, Simba welcome Petro de Luanda in a high-tempo contest between two sides whose ambitions stretch well beyond the group phase.
–CAF/ChannelAfrica–
