The Confederations of African Football (CAF) has revealed plans to expand the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to 28 participating teams.
Patrice Motsepe, CAF president, announced the planned expansion on Friday at the confederation’s exco meeting press conference in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
AFCON currently features 24 teams, and the potential expansion will allow four additional countries to participate in every edition.
“I had said in Morocco that CAF’s objective is to have AFCON or the equivalent of AFCON every year. Not every two years. And AFCON, as we know it, we want to increase it to 28 countries. As we said, that will take place once every four years,” Motsepe said.
The CAF president, however, did not reveal when the changes would take effect. The next edition of the AFCON will be held in 2027 and co-hosted by Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.
In December 2025, CAF announced that AFCON will be held every four years starting in 2028. A departure from the traditional biennial arrangement, which had held since the competition’s inception.
The confederation also announced that the continent’s football body will launch the African Nations League in 2029.
The South African added that while AFCON tournaments generate the majority of CAF’s revenue, the Nations League ushers in a new revenue stream that increases its financial resources.
