Wednesday, October 28, 2026 • The draw for the group stage of the 2026-2027 CAF Champions League, held today, Wednesday, at the headquarters of the Egyptian Football Association in 6th of October City in Cairo, placed Sudan's Al-Hilal in Group D alongside Egypt's Pyramids, Guinea's Horoya Conakry and Morocco's MAS Fes; the first round will be played on November 27 to 29 and the sixth round will conclude on January 22 to 24, 2027, with the first and second of each group qualifying for the quarter-finals (Source: Reuters and YallaKora, October 28, 2026) • Al-Hilal reacted with relief to the outcome of the draw: board member Rami Kamal said that Group D gives his team a real chance to show its continental ambitions, affirming: "We respect the opponent but we do not fear him," and that Al-Hilal is qualified to compete strongly and qualify for the final stages, while Mudathir Al-Tayeb "Karika", Al-Hilal's representative at the draw ceremony, described the draw as balanced and the chances of all the clubs as equal (Source: winwin website, October 28, 2026, and Erem News, October 28, 2026) • Al-Hilal faces its three group opponents for the first time in its history, and this season avoids a clash between the start of the group stage and the national team matches that exhausted its internationals last season; its internationals play with the Falcons of Jediane against Senegal on November 13 and 16 in Dakar and Juba before joining the team for the first round, while the club's management set reaching the semi-final as an initial ambition and winning the continental title as a goal in 2028 (Source: winwin website, October 28, 2026) • Al-Merrikh achieved its first win in the Rwandan Premier League by defeating Rwanda Police by one goal to nil this afternoon in their postponed match at the Kigali Pele Stadium, scored by the Malagasy striker Feno Hasina, raising the Red's tally to four points with postponed matches still to play, in its first victory after its goalless draw in its first match in the competition and its elimination from the CAF Champions League (Source: Al-Match sports newspaper and Mashaweer, October 28, 2026)

— Sports Desk