By Dayo Awoniyi
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced new player registration regulations for clubs competing in the CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup group stages, NigeriaFootballNG reports.
The draws for both continental tournaments were held on Monday in Johannesburg, confirming 16 elite clubs, including Nigeria’s Rivers United, for the Champions League group phase.
Under the revised framework, CAF stated that participating clubs will be allowed to register new players between January 1 and 31, 2026, aligning with the international mid-season transfer window. The new provision gives teams a valuable opportunity to strengthen their squads before the decisive stages of the competition.
However, CAF clarified that newly signed players will only be eligible to feature in group stage matches if their registration on the CAF digital system is completed at least 72 hours before kickoff of any scheduled fixture.
The group stage matches are scheduled to begin in November and run through mid-February, maintaining CAF’s adjusted competition calendar for the 2025/26 season.
Rivers United, Nigeria’s sole representative in the Champions League group stage, will look to take advantage of the new rule as they prepare to face some of Africa’s most formidable sides in their quest for continental success.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
