CAF Launches Host Search for 2028, 2031, and 2033 AFCON Tournaments

Africa’s continental soccer body launched an expedited search for host nations to stage the 2028, 2031, and 2033 Africa Cup of Nations tournaments after scrapping plans for a four-year cycle, Sportcal reported.

The Confederation of African Football executive committee unanimously decided to revert to a biennial format. Interested nations must register their intention by November 17, while complete documentation and government guarantees are due by December 8.

CAF announced its intention to switch AFCON to a four-year cycle last December. Critics across the continent argued against the shift, contending it would diminish soccer development, playing opportunities, sponsorship inventory, and commercial visibility.

According to Sportcal, the executive committee concluded that a nations league alternative would require too much time to bridge the financial gap caused by cutting the AFCON schedule in half.

Host Bids and Preparation Timelines

Prior to that switch, CAF had received three bids to host the 2028 tournament. Given the short notice of the return to biennial competition, one of these three will likely become the 2028 host on the basis of preparedness.

The three bidders were Morocco, which hosted the most recent tournament in 2025 and has not hosted AFCON since 1976, alongside a joint bid from neighbors Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Only South Africa among those four has ever hosted AFCON, doing so in 1996 and 2013.

Morocco is the most likely contender to turn around a tournament-ready set of stadia on a year’s notice. South Africa’s influence and the distribution of hosting duties among multiple nations might tilt the outcome in the opposite direction, particularly since CAF is now more receptive to shared hosting proposals.

Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda are set to jointly host the upcoming AFCON tournament scheduled for 2027. That event marks the first time the tournament will have three host nations.

An additional logistical concern for prospective hosts is a March announcement from CAF president Patrice Motsepe. He revealed that, in future, each AFCON will feature 28 teams instead of 24, an expansion from 16 in 2019.

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