The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially confirmed the key dates for the historic TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027, which will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
According to CAF, the tournament will kick off on Saturday, June 19, 2027, with the final scheduled for Saturday, July 17, 2027, marking a major milestone as the first AFCON edition to be staged across three countries. CAF is yet to confirm which host nation will stage the opening match and the final.
The 2027 tournament is expected to be a landmark event for African football, particularly for the East African region, with projections indicating it could reach an audience of over 400 million people. The competition also signals AFCON’s return to East Africa for the first time since Ethiopia hosted the tournament in 1976.
Attention now turns to the qualification process, with the draw for the qualifiers set to take place on May 19, 2026. A total of 48 teams, including the three co-host nations, will compete for places at the finals.
The qualification campaign will be played across three FIFA international windows. Matchdays one and two are scheduled for September 21 to October 6, 2026, followed by matchdays three and four from November 9 to 17, 2026. The final round of qualifiers—matchdays five and six—will be held between March 22 and 30, 2027.
Teams will be divided into 12 groups of four, with the top two sides from each group earning qualification to the final tournament. The draw in May will determine the pathway each nation must navigate on the road to East Africa.
CAF noted that the 2027 edition will build on the success of recent tournaments, including AFCON 2023 in Côte d’Ivoire and AFCON 2025 in Morocco, both of which recorded strong commercial growth, increased sponsorship interest and expanded global audiences.
CAF unveils AFCON 2027 schedule as East Africa prepares for landmark tournament
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