The draw for the 29th Edition of the Africa Cup of Nations Preliminary Draw was held Thursday at Emperors Palace in Johannesburg, South Africa for the 30 teams to play the final qualification rounds of The Orange AFCON to be hosted in a South Africa January 19 - February 10, 2013.
The draw got off to a good start with all keen to see how the pairings would come out from the seeded teams and unseeded sides as fifteen nations battle it out for a spot in the final 16.
The teams will now play a two-legged knockout system of home and away games played between 7 - 9 September and 12 - 14 October.
The draw for 30 teams promises some mouth-watering matches as the race to join hosts South Africa and make a total of 16 teams reaches the end.
Once the 15 winners from this draw emerge the final draw for the tournament itself will take place on 26 October. Defending champions Zambia and beaten finalist in the last tournament, Ivory Coast leads the seeded teams expected to make the 15 wining sides from the draw.
South Africa's Bafana Bafana team did not have to quality as they are host country and will only know on 26 October.
CAF Secretary General of CAF, Mr Hicham El Amrani conducted the draw assisted by former Bafana Bafana captain, Neil Tovey, as well as by former Nigerian footballer Daniel Amukachi
The teams were drawn as follows:
Mali vs Botswana
Zimbabwe vs Angola
Ghana vs Malawi
Liberia v Nigeria
Zambia vs Uganda
Cape Verde vs Cameroon
Mozambique vs Morroco
Sierra Leone vs Tunisia
Guinea vs Niger
Sudan vs Ethiopia
Libya vs Algeria
Cote Vs d'Ivoire vs Senegal
Democratic Rep of Congo vs Equatorial Guinea
Gabon vs Togo
Burkina Faso vs Central African Republic
Caf
