June and July next year will see the Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Patrice Motsepe reveal the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon).
According to the South African, rumours that the event, co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, would be postponed or moved were utterly untrue. Doubts have been cast regarding the time frame for the readiness of the necessary infrastructure in the three East African nations to host the finals.
Meanwhile, Nicholas Musonye, the head of Kenya’s local organising committee, informed AFP on Thursday that postponing the event until 2028 would be beneficial for Kenya since the nation is preparing for general elections in August 2027.
According to Motsepe, the Afcon next year in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will be really well received.
“I have great assurance. Challenges abound always. As Africans, we must have faith in ourselves and in our people. World class are the calibre of people leading African football.”
Following a meeting of Caf’s executive committee in Dar es Salaam on Friday, Motsepe was addressing a news conference as an inspection of infrastructure and facilities in the three host countries by officials from the governing body would continue till Tuesday.
Starting in 2019, Caf vowed to hold Afcon mid-year, but the previous three tournaments have been scheduled for January-February or December-January.
Scheduling the competition during the European club season has caused arguments about player release dates; from 2028, Afcon will be run every four years rather than biannually.
The exact dates of the 2027 Afcon will be made public in due time, Motsepe said. While stating he hoped to grow Afcon from 24 to 28 teams in the future, the Caf president made no mention of offers to host the 2028 finals.
Still set for Morocco WAFCON
Motsepe elsewhere states that Caf still have a connection with Morocco to stage the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon), set to start on 17 March.
Early this month, South Africa’s deputy sports minister said that her country would intervene toorganisee the championships.
South African sports minister Gayton McKenzie eventually clarified her remarks by saying that Wafcon 2026’s formally designated host is Morocco.
Some other nations said, “Please, can we host it?” but they want to move the date, Motsepe reported.
The [2027] Women’s World Cup qualifier demands the date; we cannot alter it.
The Wafcon continues; it will be a success. It must occur inside that window.
