Kaizer Chiefs will enter the 2025/26 CAF club inter competitions as the lowest ranked of the four South African clubs playing on the continent next season.
This is according to the CAF 5-year ranking.
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CAF uses this ranking system based on results from the preceding five years to determine which member association enters two clubs in its competitions, along with club seeding matters ahead of draws in both the Champions League and Confederation Cup.
The points are multiplied by a coefficient according to the preceding year with the most recent year carrying the most value at 5 on a scale dropping by one.
The ranking for next season’s two CAF club competitions is based on results from the 2020/21 season up to 2024/25.
Fortunate for Chiefs is that their last appearance in continental club football was within the last five years when they lost to Al Ahly in the final of the Champions League.
That runners-up achievement had dropped to the value of five points which places Chiefs on position 43 on the 2025/26 CAF club competitions rankings.
Winning the Champions League is worth six points, finishing second comes with five points, semi-finals have four points, quarterfinal three, third place in the group (two points) and one point for finishing last in the group stages.
In the CAF Confederation Cup, it is five points for being champions, four for runners-up, three (semi-finalists), two (quarterfinalists), one point (third place in the group), and 0.5 points for last place in the group.
There are no points earned for being knocked out before the group stages.
While Chiefs – who secured their ticket via lifting the Nedbank Cup, will return to CAF club competition football with five points and sitting on position 43, Mamelodi Sundowns will be second on the continent with at least 62 points.
Their final points accumulation will be known after the second leg of the Champions League final on Sunday against Pyramids.
Orlando Pirates are in 15th position on 30 points as they continue in the Champions League again after getting stuck in the semi-finals.
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Stellenbosch is the fourth South African club and will join Chiefs in the Confederation Cup.
They will do so with 15 points and on position 21.
