A total of 52 CAF member associations remained eligible to enter the qualification after Morocco automatically qualified as the World Cup host and Ghana was barred from competing in this age category due to a ban imposed for cheating during the 2022 qualifiers.
The draw for the qualifiers was held on 12 December 2024 at the CAF Headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.
Ethiopia won on walkover and advanced to the second round after Zimbabwe withdrew before the first leg.
[5] Benin won on walkover and advanced to the second round after Congo withdrew before the first leg citing financial and institutional constraints beyond their federation control.
Botswana won on walkover and advanced to the second round after Equatorial Guinea withdrew before the first leg.