Bright Stars train at Juba Stadium. (Photo: SSFA).

The South Sudan Men’s Football Team will travel to Congo Brazzaville on Sunday evening for the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations 2025 Qualifiers match next week.

The Bright Stars will play their first match on September 5, while the qualifiers tournament kicks off on Wednesday, September 4, with matches being played across various regions of the continent.

Head Coach Nichola Dupuis has summoned a squad of 30 players for the qualifiers, with 15 players selected locally and 15 from abroad.

In the past few days, the national team held rigorous training sessions at the Juba Stadium in preparation for the qualifiers.

The squad has been in training since August 20, with local players joined by international players and members of the Al-Merreikh Bentiu team, who recently returned from participating in the African Champions League.

The draw placed South Sudan in Group 11, alongside South Africa, Uganda, and Congo. Following the match against Congo, Bright Stars will face South Africa on September 10.

Congo’s national team will play their opening qualifier match against South Sudan at home on September 5, after the stadium ban in Brazzaville was lifted.

The venue, which had previously failed a stadium inspection by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), was upgraded to meet the required standards.

This match marks Congo’s return to playing in front of home fans after forfeiting a World Cup qualifier in June and suffering a heavy defeat to Morocco in an away match.