Mamelodi Sundowns Rank As Africas Leading Club Regardless Of The Outcome In The CAF Champions League Final

They have reached the summit of the Confederation of African Football club ranking for the upcoming season making them the leading seeds for the Champions League in 2026 twenty seven.

The rankings calculate points based on results in African club competitions during the previous five years. For Sundowns this includes two finals one this year and one last year two semi finals and one quarter final.

Although they can earn additional points by winning the two legged final against AS FAR Sundowns possess sixty eight points already. This is two more than Egyptian giants Al Ahly and ten more than Esperance from Tunisia who sit in third place. Sundowns defeated them in last seasons quarter finals and this years semi finals.

Orlando Pirates who have again qualified for the Champions League next season sit in nineteenth position. They reached the semi final last year and in twenty twenty two advanced to the African Confederation Cup final losing to Raja Casablanca.

Other teams like Stellenbosch in twenty fourth Marumo Gallants in thirty seventh Kaizer Chiefs in thirty ninth Sekhukhune United in fifty eighth and AmaZulu in sixty ninth also feature in the rankings due to their participation in the group stages of continental competitions in recent years.

Chiefs will compete in continental football once more next season in the CAF Confederation Cup having finished third in the Betway Premiership this term.

The primary advantage for Sundowns of topping the rankings is the potential receipt of byes in next years opening round allowing them to automatically advance and thus avoiding two matches.

This positioning will also place them in the top seeding pot for the group phase draw should they progress past the initial knockout stages.

CAF maintains five year country rankings to decide the twelve nations eligible for two teams each in the Champions League and Confederation Cup.

These rankings award points based on club performances from those nations in the last five years of continental events with recent results carrying greater weight.

South Africa started this season in third place with one hundred thirty one points behind Egypt with one hundred ninety and Morocco with one hundred forty two.

However for the following season South Africa might drop to fourth if overtaken by Algeria following USM Algers victory in this weekends Confederation Cup final and if Sundowns were to lose against AS FAR.