Africa Cup of Nations is the most-watched football event on the continent. And with CAF Champions League just concluded, the focus is now on the next big continental football event set to take place in January 2024, 2025 and 2027. CAN take place every two years.
However, this year’s event has been pushed to January 2024 to avoid playing in the rainy season.
The big question at this point is which countries are set to host the next two AFCON championships?
Before discovering the host countries of the next CAN, read the article for detailed information on the various sports betting options for upcoming continental and international matches.
2023 CAN Qualifying Rounds Now in Homestretch
First off, the 2023 CAN qualifiers are in the winding stages. Some countries are already qualified for the big continental event. Notably, the 2023 AFCON will take place in Ivory Coast.
The 2023 CAF qualifiers have entered the home stretch. Out of the 48 countries that have participated in the qualifying rounds, a number have secured their CAN slots.
Nigeria, Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde, Burkina Faso, Egypt, Guinea, Algeria, Mali, Ivory Coast, Zambia, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, Tunisia, South Africa, Morocco, Senegal, and Mozambique are the nations that have secured their places in the 2023 CAF with a game to spare.
Mauritania, DR Congo, Gabon, Sudan, Gambia, Congo Republic, Tanzania, Uganda, Angola, Central African Republic, Ghana, Namibia, Burundi, and Cameroon will have to wait until the final qualifier match is played to determine their prospects in the 2023 AFCON.
Looking Beyond: Which Country Will Host the 2025 CAN?
With Ivory Coast ready for the big event scheduled for January 2024, we now shift our focus to two years after. And the question is which countries are in the race to host the 2025 CAN?
Guinea was originally slated to host the 2025 AFCON but after failing to meet the prerequisites for the big event, the country was stripped of the hosting rights. The announcement was made by CAF President, Patrice Mostope. As a result, CAF re-opened the bidding for the 2025 CAF hosting rights.
Morocco, Nigeria, Algeria and Zambia are the current frontrunners in the quest to host the 2025 AFCON. To determine who qualifies to host the big continent event, CAF came up with some stadium rules.
Notably, the host country for 2025 CAF must have met the stadium quality thresholds, which includes having at least six venues with a capacity of at least 15,000 seats and up to 40,000 seats.
Stadium inspection visits to the four frontrunners have been concluded and what remains is for the CAF executive committee to announce the 2025 CAN hosting county by 15th August 2023.
Delaying Tactics and Football Politics
The fact that Algeria has also expressed interest in hosting the 2027 AFCON means the CAF executive committee will have a tough decision to make should they settle for either of the North African countries for the 2025 event. Algeria and Morocco have been embroiled in political and diplomatic wars in recent years.
The delay in announcing the country to replace Guinea as the 2025 CAN has been interpreted in some quarters as a political dilemma. However, we expect either Morocco or Algeria to be handed the rights to host the 2025 AFCON.
The Way is Clearer for Morocco
After Algeria expressed interest in hosting the 2027 CAN, the pressure that has been mounting on the CAF executive committee is significantly lowered.
Technically, Morocco is currently best-placed to host the event, noting that they have the best infrastructure for it compared to Zambia or Nigeria.
So while that remains speculative, it means Algeria is also looking to get the green light to host the 2027 AFCON.
2027 CAN: Who are the Hosting Frontrunners?
It is still a long way to go before football fans across Africa have the pleasure of watching the best national soccer teams showcase their talents in 2027. However, the bidding race for the CAN has only got intense.
Even though Algeria could be lucky to get the nod to host the 2027 CAN, it will not be a smooth sail for another North African country. East African countries are also in the mix for a combined 2027 AFCON hosting ticket.
CAF in Receipt of 2027 CAN Hosting Bids
According to a post published on Reuters, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is already in receipt of 2027 CAN bids. There have been a total of 4 bids so far.
Morocco has surprisingly been omitted from the 2027 bids, suggesting that a compromise must have been struck to have the famous Atlas Lions host the 2025 AFCON.
Other countries that have sent bids to host the 2027 event are Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The three East African countries have sent a bid to jointly host the event. So, while the joint bid is expected to be persuasive enough to have CAF look eastwards, it was submitted after the deadline.
Egypt, Algeria and Botswana are other countries that have equally sent their bids to CAF requesting to host the 2027 AFCON.
