Nigeria: CAF Champions League - Rangers, Rivers Utd Learn Opponents

What the report says

Nigeria’s Rangers International and Rivers United have learned their first opponents in the opening round of the 2026/27 CAF Champions League, according to a report distributed by AllAfrica from Vanguard. Rangers, last season’s Nigeria Premier Football League champions, will meet Benin Republic’s AS Sobemap, while Rivers United were paired with Ivorian club San Pedro.

The article said Rangers are scheduled to host the first leg at Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne before travelling for the return match. If they advance, they would face the winner of the tie between ASN Nigelec of Niger Republic and Algeria’s MC Alger. Rivers United will start away from home against San Pedro and then host the second leg; a possible next-round opponent would be either Uganda’s Vipers or FC Nouadhibou of Mauritania.

The qualifying ties are set for early September, with first legs listed for September 4 to 6 and return fixtures for September 11 to 13. The piece also noted that both AS Sobemap and San Pedro are coming into continental competition after winning their first domestic league titles last season, which adds some uncertainty to the matchups despite the Nigerian sides’ experience.

The report further said Nigeria will have two other clubs in the CAF Confederation Cup, with Shooting Stars drawn against CS Sfaxien and El-Kanemi Warriors facing UDIB. It described the 2026/27 continental campaign as a significant moment for Nigerian club football, as the country has not had multiple representatives in both competitions in the same season since 2019/20.