Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Patrice Motsepe attends a press conference at Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, 20 December 2025, ahead of the start of the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) football tournament. EPA/JALAL MORCHIDI
Saturday Dec 20, 2025. 19:01
A revolutionary change to the African football calendar was announced on Saturday, moving the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to every four years and introducing a new African Nations League.
This was announced by CAF President Patrice Motsepe at a press conference ahead of the commencement of the tournament in Morocco on Sunday.
It brings the continent in line with the international calendar as the Confederation of African Football said it was making the move in the interest of player welfare and that it would ensure more revenue for the game on the continent.
“This is the best decision for African football,” said Motsepe.
The next AFCON will continue as planned in 2027, which is set to be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, followed by another tournament the following year, Motsepe said, inviting prospective host countries to bid.
After the 2028 edition, the 24-team tournament will be held every four years, ending over a half century of a biennial competition.
Instead, an African Nations League will be introduced annually from 2029, which Motsepe said would be played in the September, October and November windows for national team matches.
While other confederations in Asia, Europe and South America host their continental championship every four years, Africa held onto hosting its championship every two years, arguing that the revenue generated from the tournament was around 80% of its budget.
“I had a problem in the past about changing the Cup of Nations to every four years but once I was taken through the numbers I could see we will make more money [with the new calendar],” the CAF president stated.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has previously pressured CAF’s leadership to change its cycle, and the timing of AFCON has long courted controversy because it has usually been hosted in the middle of the European season, forcing clubs to release their African players.
This tug of loyalty was supposed to be solved by moving the Cup of Nations to mid-year from 2019 but later tournaments in Cameroon in 2022 and Ivory Coast in 2024 were again hosted at the start of the year.
“It is in the interests of the teams, clubs and players,” Motsepe added.
“I can’t have players leaving their clubs in Europe in the mid-season. It’s wrong.
“We’ve got a duty to the players. We know how frustrating it is for the players when their club says they are needed but they are also needed for the country.
“It’s unfair to the players. We are solving this problem for us in Africa and for our African players,” he said.
By Nic Gleeson