Fifa has announced that the first African qualifying matches for the 2010 World Cup will take place in October.
Ten teams will meet on 13 October in the first leg of home-and-away knockout matches.
The return legs are scheduled for 17 November.
In the opening fixtures Seychelles will face Djibouti, Sierra Leone take on Guinea-Bissau while Central African Republic play Sao Tome and Principe.
In the other matches Somalia will play Swaziland while Madagascar take on Comoros.
In all, 52 African teams are vying for five spots in the finals.
South Africa as host qualifies automatically for the 32-team tournament.
Winners of the knockout matches will gain a berth in the second African qualification round.
The best 20 teams in that round will be drawn in five qualification groups, the
winner of each clinching a spot in the World Cup finals.
The first qualifying matches anywhere in the world begin on Saturday, with a Fifa-sanctioned event at the South Pacific Games that doubles as the first round of qualifying for the Oceania Confederation.
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