CAF chairman confirms that the 2027 Africa Cup will take place as planned in Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya

The 2027 Africa Cup of Nations will go ahead as originally planned in Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya, the president of the Confederation of African Football said on Friday.

Patrice Motsepe said after a meeting of the CAF Executive Committee that the tournament will be played in June and/or July and the organization will announce the exact dates soon.

Motsepe discussed several issues, including last month’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and the hosting of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations next month.

Motsepe said the women’s tournament would go ahead as planned from March 17 to April 3, refuting reports that Morocco wanted to withdraw from hosting the tournament for the third time in a row after South Africa offered to take over.

«Morocco came to help. There were many countries that wanted to organize the event, but because we didn’t have time, our standards were very high,» Motsepe said.

«Right now we still have an arrangement with Morocco. Some other countries are saying ‘can we please host it?’ But they want to change the date. We cannot change the date because it is one of the qualifying tournaments for the Women’s World Cup. So, WAFCON continues, we will ensure that it takes place within that window.”

READ ALSO | Arteta promises to change Arsenal’s squad for the FA Clup vs Wigan match

British newspaper The Guardian reported on Thursday that the 2027 Africa Cup would be scrapped and Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya would host the 2028 tournament instead, but Motsepe said the report was incorrect.

“There was an accusation that I am here to tell Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda that I am taking away the AFCON because our three countries will not be ready for it. That is totally baseless,” Motsepe said.

“AFCON will be hugely successful in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda next year… East Africa will be a powerhouse of the best football on the continent.”

If the three East African countries host the 2027 tournament, it will be the first since 2013 that the competition has not been rescheduled due to issues with the original host hgtgdfgdtr11.

Motsepe expressed his “deep gratitude” to Morocco for hosting the “most successful AFCON in the history of this competition”, but also his disappointment at the disturbances that marred the final, with on-field fighting between stewards and Senegal fans, and the Senegal team walking off the field.

«Very embarrassing. That should never happen again. It will never happen again. It’s a blot on the excellent AFCON we had,» Motsepe said.

He said he could not comment on the disciplinary proceedings against the Senegalese and Moroccan federations, but suggested Morocco’s ongoing appeal against $415,000 fines and match bans would likely be taken to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Senegal won the final 1-0.

Published on February 13, 2026