Africa-Press. CAF President Patrice Motsepe confirmed that the Africa Cup of Nations scheduled for 2027 in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda will go ahead as planned and will not be postponed.
Press reports in recent hours had claimed there was a trend within CAF to delay AFCON 2027 and stage it in 2028.
But Motsepe settled the debate at a press conference on Friday, saying: “We hope to continue on this path. The next edition in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda in 2027—what has been said about postponing it is not true.”
CAF president on sanctions for Morocco and Senegal
Motsepe also spoke about sanctions involving Morocco and Senegal after the AFCON 2025 final, saying African football was embarrassed by the incidents that marred the 2025 final, when Senegal left the pitch after a penalty was awarded against the team.
He told reporters: “I am deeply disappointed by the unacceptable events that occurred during the final match, and we will not allow a repeat of what happened in the most recent AFCON final.”
He added: “We will amend CAF’s statutes and disciplinary rules to ensure our judicial bodies have the authority to impose sanctions that reflect the seriousness of such behavior. It has become clear to us that penalties and financial fines are not enough. We will make adjustments to the regulations and governing laws so there are deterrent sanctions in cases of serious violations and actions that damage the reputation of football in Africa.”
Motsepe also highlighted positives, saying: “The number of sponsors reached a record in this edition—we reached 23 sponsors. In the Cameroon edition we had only six. Revenues were also raised significantly and impressively in Morocco compared with the previous two AFCON editions in Cameroon and Côte d’Ivoire.”
He added: “Viewership exceeded the billions and also achieved unprecedented figures on social media because of the Morocco edition.”
