Champions League: Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia each have two representatives, TP Mazembe and ASEC eliminated

The second leg of the second preliminary round of the African Champions League proved fatal for TP Mazembe and the Ivorian clubs. Conversely, MAS Fès, the reigning Moroccan champions, caused a sensation by eliminating ASEC Mimosas. Several other teams also secured their place in the group stage.

The trip to the Hammadi-Agrebi Olympic Stadium in Radès turned into a nightmare for Marc-Philippe Arouna Diouf's TP Mazembe. A week after being held to a 1-1 draw at home, the Congolese club lost 1-0 to Club Africain on Sunday. The Tunisians thus won the two-legged tie 2-1. With this elimination, the Ravens miss out on the CAF Champions League group stage for the second consecutive year.

ASEC Mimosas also saw their run come to an end. Playing in front of their home crowd at the Félix-Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, the Ivorian club was defeated 2-1 by MAS Fès, following a 1-1 draw in the first leg played in Meknes. A cruel elimination for the Mimosas, who had high hopes for this competition.

Thanks to this victory, MAS Fès returns to the group stage of the CAF Champions League after a 14-year absence. The Ivorian clubs FC San Pedro and ASEC Mimosas, meanwhile, are eliminated. FC San Pedro was soundly beaten in Nouakchott by FC Nouadhibou (2-0).

Simba SC and Al-Hilal ensure

In Tanzania, Simba SC confirmed their superiority against Equatorial Guinea's 15 de Agosto. After their resounding victory in the first leg (6-1), the Tanzanians again triumphed in the return leg (3-0), comfortably securing their qualification.

Al-Hilal Omdurman of Sudan will also be in the group stage. Having won the first leg against Sidama Bunna (2-0), they repeated the same result in the return leg (2-0).

Winners of the CAF Confederation Cup in 2020, 2022, and 2025, RS Berkane have also secured their place in the CAF Champions League group stage. The Moroccan club eliminated Nigeria's Star Sport over the two legs, winning both matches (2-0 and 1-0).

South Africa, Egypt and Morocco are well represented

Despite the elimination of the defending champions, Mamelodi Sundowns, South Africa will have a representative in the competition. Orlando Pirates secured their qualification against African Stars, winning the first leg (1-0) and then convincingly in the return leg (4-0).

Egypt will also be represented by two clubs: Pyramids FC and Zamalek. The former eliminated Al-Merrikh Bentiu, while the latter defeated APR FC. Pyramids won the first leg 1-0 before confirming their dominance in the return leg 4-0. Zamalek, for its part, won both legs against the Rwandan club (1-0 in both legs).

With these qualifications, several major teams from the continent have confirmed their presence in the next round, while the elimination of TP Mazembe and ASEC Mimosas constitutes one of the main surprises of this preliminary phase.