What You Need to Know
The African Football Confederation’s decision to change the African Cup of Nations to every four years instead of two has sparked significant debate among fans and players. While some see potential benefits for African teams, others criticize the decision as yielding to external pressures and harming the sport’s development in Africa.
Africa. Social media users reacted to the African Football Confederation’s (CAF) decision to organize the African Cup of Nations every four years instead of every two years, a move that has sparked widespread debate on social platforms.
CAF President Patrice Motsepe announced during a meeting of the CAF executive committee that starting in 2029, the tournament will be held every four years, following discussions with all partners and consideration of the global match calendar.
Motsepe justified the decision by emphasizing the need to consider the interests of African players who play in European clubs, noting that the federation aims to balance its responsibilities to African football with its obligations to players competing in the world’s top clubs, especially in Europe.
Reports indicate that the overlap of the African tournament with European league schedules negatively impacts major clubs, as there are 138 African players participating in the tournament who are also active in the top five European leagues, causing frustration for clubs that pay substantial salaries to these players.
Financial reports have shown that the tournament is a primary source of revenue for African football, contributing 80% of CAF’s income. The most recent edition in Ivory Coast in 2023 achieved a record revenue of over $1.5 billion.
In a related development, CAF increased the prize money for the winning team from $7 million to $10 million.
Future of the Tournament
A recent episode of the program “Networks” highlighted the division of opinions among social media users regarding the decision, with varying perspectives on its impact on African football and the future of the continental tournament.
Some participants believe the decision has positive aspects for African teams. Activist Hassan wrote:
“Holding it every two years increased the number of international continental and regional matches, which elevated the rankings of some African teams to undeserved levels. However, after this decision, there will be equality among teams from all continents.”
On the other hand, user Karim argued that CAF is confused in its decisions, tweeting for alternative solutions:
“This confusion requires the African federation to either move the tournament to summer or align with the international calendar; they exhaust and burden African professional players.”
In a contrasting opinion, Ibrahim expressed his rejection of the decision, viewing it as yielding to Western pressures, stating:
“They have killed football in Africa; our celebrations are shrinking under Western dictates. Africa belongs to Africans, not to the Western federation.”
Economically, activist Mohammed criticized the significant spending on the tournament, calling for funds to be directed towards development, tweeting:
“A poor continent spends billions every two years for a football competition; it would be better to allocate these funds to build schools, hospitals, roads, services, factories, and agriculture.”
It is noteworthy that the first edition of the tournament was held in 1957 in Sudan and has been organized every two years since, providing substantial economic boosts to host countries through match revenues, tourism, trade, and transportation.
Today marks the opening of the 35th edition of the tournament in Morocco, which is expected to generate revenues of approximately $1.2 billion.
The African Cup of Nations (AFCON) was first held in 1957 in Sudan and has traditionally been organized every two years. This biennial schedule has provided economic boosts to host nations through tourism and related activities. However, the recent decision to shift to a four-year cycle has raised concerns about its impact on the tournament’s legacy and the players involved, particularly those in European leagues.
