Egypt was handed a tricky set of fixtures for the 2019 Total Under-23 Africa Cup of Nations tournament following the draw for the group stage on Wednesday at Haramlek Palace in Alexandria.
The hosts, who were one of two top seeds, were drawn in Group A alongside three West African nations: Mali, Cameroon and Ghana.
Cameroon and Ghana will be making their debuts at the tournament.
Nigeria, the other top seed and defending champions, is in Group B along with Côte d’Ivoire, South Africa and Zambia.
Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa are the only teams to have qualified for every edition of the tournament since it began in 2011. The tournament is played once every four years.
The tournament kicks off on November 8 and will be played at the Cairo and Al Salam Stadiums in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.
The two finalists and the winner of the third-place playoff will qualify to represent Africa at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, next year.
Between June and July this year, Egypt hosted the Africa Cup of Nations. It will also host the 27th edition of the CAF Football Awards at the Albatross Citadel resort in Hurghada in January 2020.
