TUNIS — Tunisia's two entrants in the 2026–2027 CAF Champions League learned their routes on Thursday, when the draw for the preliminary rounds was held at the Confederation of African Football's headquarters in Cairo. The two clubs left with sharply different assignments.

Espérance Sportive de Tunis was one of three clubs exempted from the first preliminary round, alongside holders Mamelodi Sundowns and Morocco's RS Berkane. The Blood and Gold enter directly in the second round, where they will face the winner of the tie between Libya's Asswehly SC and Zanzibar's KVZ. Espérance play the first leg away between 16 and 18 October and host the return between 23 and 25 October.

Club Africain start a round earlier. The Bab Jedid club were drawn against Djoliba AC of Mali, with the first leg at home and the return in Bamako; the first round is scheduled for 4–6 September and 11–13 September. Should they advance, they meet the winner of TP Mazembe of the Democratic Republic of Congo against Medeama SC of Ghana.

Reading the two paths

The seeding did what seeding is designed to do. Espérance's exemption reflects its standing in CAF's five-year club coefficient, built on a decade of consistent group-stage and knockout participation. The reward is one fewer two-legged tie, roughly three weeks of additional preparation, and an opening opponent that will arrive having already played two competitive matches in September heat.

Club Africain's draw is harder to read as a whole. Djoliba is a serious Malian institution but a beatable one over two legs, and holding the first leg at Radès is an advantage — it allows the tie to be settled at home before a trip that, for Tunisian clubs, has historically meant heat, travel logistics and a hostile crowd rather than superior opposition. The difficulty sits behind that. TP Mazembe remains among the most decorated clubs on the continent and Medeama has grown into a competitive Ghanaian side; whichever survives, Club Africain would face a second-round opponent stronger than several teams that will reach the group stage through easier brackets.

The structural point Tunisian football keeps meeting

Both ties turn on squad depth in September and October, which is precisely where the Tunisian calendar creates friction. The domestic season opens in August, the transfer window closes shortly after, and clubs are asked to field a competitive continental line-up while integrating new signings and managing pre-season fitness. Espérance's bye softens that; Club Africain's does not.

The financial gap between reaching the group stage and exiting in the preliminaries is the reason the draw matters beyond sporting pride. Group-stage participation brings CAF prize money and gate receipts across a guaranteed six matches — revenue that Tunisian clubs, operating with constrained budgets and limited transfer income, cannot easily replace. For Club Africain, two preliminary rounds stand between the club and that revenue; for Espérance, one.

The first legs are five weeks away.