The 2027 African Cup of Nations (Afcon), set to be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, could be postponed due to the unpreparedness of the three countries. Reports from Kenyan media suggest that the competition could be postponed with some of the host nations looking not ready. According to Capital FM, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is set to discuss the possibility of pushing the continental tournament to 2028 as the three co-hosts labor to finalize the construction of the designated sports facilities in time. The Guardian also reported that CAF is understood to face issues with finding time in the international calendar to complete the qualification given the potential involvement of 10 African teams at this Summer’s World Cup. Before CAF’s Executive Committee meeting takes place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on Friday, doubts persist over whether the three East African neighbors are ready for the rigors of hosting the 24-team tourney, to be spread across 10 cities. This may prompt the continental governing body to push it back by 12 months, thereby forcing the 2028 Afcon to be held a year later. To complicate matters, CAF had earlier announced that AFCON will revert to a quadrennial competition from 2028. South Africa and Botswana have expressed an interest to co-host the 2028 Afcon as have Ethiopia. The decision to push AFCON 2027 could allow CAF to transition to the four-year cycle in addition to allowing teams that will be competing in this year’s World Cup to prepare well for the competition. CAF has also introduced a new competition — the Africa Nations League — initially set for 2029 while scrapping the Africa Nations Championships (CHAN).
