The quarterfinals of the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup will get underway on Tuesday, April 1 and Wednesday, April 2, 2025, as Africa’s heavyweight football clubs chase continental glory.
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In the Champions League, the prime tie pits Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa) against Esperance de Tunis (Tunisia), with the first leg taking place at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria on the afternoon of Tuesday 1 April.
This clash not only brings together The Brazilians and The Blood and Gold, two of Africa’s most exciting and dynamic teams, but also sees Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso come up against his former team – the Portuguese tactician was in charge of Esperance from January to October of 2024.
“Obviously, I follow the results [of Esperance] but not the games,” said Cardoso. “I know they are doing well. They are a team with experience and has been reaching the last stages of the Champions League and that has won it several times and always has the will to do well but I think we should worry about ourselves and do well in the two game.”
In the remainder of the Champions League ties on Tuesday, Orlando Pirates (South Africa) will head to North Africa for a clash with MC Alger (Algeria); reigning champions Al Ahly (Egypt) will host Al Hilal (Sudan) at the Cairo International Stadium; and Pyramids FC (Egypt) will welcome AS FAR (Morocco) for a thriller at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo.
In the Confederation Cup, Simba SC (Tanzania) face a tough trip to Alexandria to take on Al Masry (Egypt) on the early evening of Wednesday 2 April – though ‘Wekundu wa Msimbazi’ coach Fadlu Davids believes that the experience gathered during his sides’ pre-season training in Egypt will help them for their clash with ‘The Green Eagles’.
“Every team you play will be a tough team and they are doing well in the Egyptian league,” said the South African tactician. “It’s going to be tough, especially when we go away from home, but we did our pre-season in Egypt, and we were well prepared for the climate and played some teams in Egypt as well. It won’t be easy like any match in the quarterfinal, but we are ready for it.”
In the remainder of the Confederation Cup ties, Stellenbosch FC (South Africa) will look to upset continental heavyweights Zamalek (Egypt) at the Cape Town Stadium; two-time CAFCC champions RS Berkane (Morocco) will be away to ASEC Mimosas (Ivory Coast) in Abidjan; and an all-Algerian derby pits CS Constantine against USM Alger at the Chahid Hamlaoui Stadium.
The Buccaneers recently beat Sundowns 2-1 in the Betway Premiership and Pirates head coach Jose Riveiro is relishing the prospect of facing them in the CAF Champions League potentially.
“Hopefully this is not the last time we meet this season,” Riveiro said. “We still have the opportunity to meet again in two competitions and if that happens it’s going to be a really good atmosphere for South African football.”
Maroons head coach Steve Barker admitted the FIFA break came at the right time for his team after a gruelling fixture schedule and is relishing the encounter with the White Knights.
“It’s good to go into the FIFA break sitting in third position and we’re now looking forward to the remainder of the season. We also have a big quarter-final match against Zamalek to look forward to,” Barker said.
“I think the FIFA break is coming at a good time for us. We have played a lot of games of late, with some tough fixtures, both physically and emotionally. There is still a lot of work to be done, and we can’t get ahead of ourselves, but we are happy where we are.”
The evening brings another three matches as CS Constantine and USM Alger square off in an all-Algerian affair at the Chahid Hamlaoui Stadium, ASEC Mimosas entertain RS Berkane at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium, while Al Masry face Simba at the Suez Stadium.
DStv broadcast details
CAF Champions League
Tuesday 1 April
15:00: Mamelodi Sundowns v Esperance De Tunis – LIVE on SuperSport PSL and SuperSport Variety 4
21:00: Al Ahly v Al Hilal – LIVE on SuperSport Variety 1
21:00: MC Alger v Orlando Pirates – LIVE on SuperSport PSL, SuperSport Variety 4 and SuperSport Maximo 360
21:00: Pyramids FC v AS FAR – LIVE on SuperSport Variety 2
CAF Confederation Cup
Wednesday 2 April
15:00: Stellenbosch FC v Zamalek – LIVE on SuperSport PSL, SuperSport Variety 4 and SuperSport Maximo 360
18:00: CS Constantine v USM Alger – LIVE on SuperSport Football
18:00: ASEC Mimosas v RS Berkane – LIVE on SuperSport Variety 3
18:00: Al Masry v Simba SC – LIVE on SuperSport Variety 4 and SuperSport Maximo 360
GOtv broadcast details
CAF Champions League
Tuesday 1 April
15:00: Mamelodi Sundowns v Esperance De Tunis – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 1
21:00: MC Alger v Orlando Pirates – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 1 and SuperSport
Maximo 360
21:00: Pyramids FC v AS FAR – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 2
CAF Confederation Cup
Wednesday 2 April
15:00: Stellenbosch FC v Zamalek – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 1 and SuperSport
Maximo 360
18:00: CS Constantine v USM Alger – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Football
18:00: ASEC Mimosas v RS Berkane – LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 2
18:00: Al Masry v Simba SC –LIVE on SuperSport GOtv Africa 1 and SuperSport Maximo 360
