The Africa Cup of Nations will be staged every two years after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) executive committee unanimously reversed its previous decision to hold the tournament every four years.
CAF president Patrice Motsepe announced the review of last year’s decision during the organisation’s strategic conference in Cape Verde, held from 7 to 9 October 2026.
The reassessment was prompted partly by the time needed to establish the new African Nations League. The continental competition had been expected to replace the current Africa Cup of Nations as a biennial tournament, but CAF now believes it will take several years for the event to generate the substantial financial resources required to make African football and CAF competitions globally competitive and financially self-sufficient.
“CAF’s executive committee decided to stage the Africa Cup of Nations every two years because it is necessary to strengthen, protect and promote the interests of African football,” Motsepe said in an official CAF statement.
“This also applies to the interests of CAF’s 54 member associations and African professional players who play for clubs outside the continent.”
He added that the decision took into account the time the proposed African Nations League would require before it could make a significant financial contribution and have a meaningful impact on the development of African football.
The next Africa Cup of Nations will be held in 2027 in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Motsepe said he was confident the tournament would be a major success, with the following editions scheduled for 2028, 2031 and 2033.
The revised calendar takes account of the expected international schedule around the 2030 World Cup.
“The next World Cup will take place in 2030 and, in line with the traditions followed by FIFA, the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations and the national-team competitions organised by other continental confederations may not be held in the same year as the World Cup,” Motsepi said.
Motsepe also underlined the tournament’s wider importance beyond competition on the pitch.
“The Africa Cup of Nations is not only a celebration of African football,” he said. “It is also an opportunity to celebrate the continent’s rich and diverse cultures, customs and traditions, and to bring together people from the 54 African countries, African communities in the diaspora and people from all parts of the world.”
He said the executive committee’s decision was in the interests of African football and CAF’s 54 member associations, and would make a significant contribution to the development and growth of the game across the continent.
