Eritrea is ready for a comeback in international football after a six-year absence

Eritrea will play international football for the first time in more than six years after taking part in the preliminary rounds for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations final to be played in March.

The isolated Red Sea state was set to face Eswatini in the two-leg preliminary round on Tuesday in March, which would have been its first appearance since a friendly defeat to Sudan in January 2020.

Eritrea has not featured in any internationals since shunning the opportunity to take part in World Cup and Cup of Nations qualifying after players consistently defected on away trips.

Eritrea has been ruled by President Isaias Afwerki since it gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, and human rights groups consistently describe his rule as deeply repressive.

Players and other team members defected after matches or tournaments in Angola in 2007, Kenya in 2009, Tanzania in 2011, Uganda in 2012, Botswana in 2015, after a World Cup qualifier, and Uganda again in 2019.

It is estimated that around 80 footballers have defected while playing for the national team abroad, and none will continue their football careers in exile.

Eritrea has not allowed teams to travel outside the country since members of the under-20 group fled to Uganda in 2019, but now appears to have changed its mind.

However, Eritrea did participate in the final preliminary rounds of the Cup of Nations, but later withdrew.

If it participates in the 2027 qualifiers, it will be the first ever Cup of Nations in which all 54 countries on the continent have participated.

The bottom 12 teams in the rankings were drawn on Tuesday in six knockout rounds, played home and away in March, to kick off the 2027 qualifiers.

The winner will advance to the group stage along with Africa’s top 42 ranked teams, which will be divided into 12 groups of four teams each.

The top two from each group will then qualify for the finals, except in those groups where already qualified co-hosts Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are invited to play.

Eritrea does not have a FIFA ranking because it has not played a match within the world football governing body’s 48-month standards.

Published on January 13, 2026