12 teams to start the 42nd African Men’s and Women’s Club Championship for Cup Winners in DR Congo

The 42nd African Men’s and Women’s Club Championship for Cup Winners will take place between 9 and 14 July in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

12 teams – six in the men’s competition and six in the women’s competition - from five countries will line up at the start, being divided into two groups of three teams each. In both the men’s and the women’s tournaments, the top two sides in each group will progress to the semi-finals.

The favourites in the women’s competition will be Angola powerhouse Petro Atlético, the most decorated team in the history of the competition. Petro Atlético are the reigning champions and won 11 titles, including an uninterrupted stint between 2008 and 2014. They have also played every final since 2018.

Petro Atlético will start their campaign in Group B, alongside Héritage, from the host country, as well as Congo’s HBC Kali. In Group A, Tout Puissant Mazembe, from DR Congo, are due to face AS Otoho from Congo and FAP from Cameroon.

The last 18 editions of the CAHB African Men’s Club Championship for Cup Winners were won by teams from Egypt or Tunisia, but none of the two nations are represented in the team line-up for this edition.

Only one previous winner – FAP Yaounde, which won the title in 2000 – will be at the start, and the bronze medallists from 2022 will start in Group B, where they face two teams from the host nation – Jeunesse Sportive de Kinshasa and Scorpion HC.

In Group A, Montada will try to become the first Moroccan side to win the competition since 1996, when KAC Marrakech secured the title. Their first two matches in this challenge will be against two teams from DR Congo - Étoile du Congo and AS Police.

In both the men’s and the women’s competition, the preliminary round will be played on 9, 10 and 11 July.

The semi-finals are scheduled for 13 July, while the final matches are played on 14 July.