CAF expands U-17 AFCON, opens bid for future tournaments

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

The Executive Committee (EXCO) of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) met to make some key decisions on Monday.

One of the decisions taken by the EXCOS was the approval of a new format for the 2025 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Qualifiers.

The number of participating teams for the tournament, which will be hosted in Morocco, has been increased from 12 to 16.

The CAF Executive Committee also resolved to open the bidding process for upcoming competitions.

Tournaments up for hosting rights include 2025, 2026, and 2027 Women’s Champions League.

Egypt, Morocco, and Cote D’Ivoire hosted the past four editions of the tournament including Morocco staging the competition twice in 2022 and 2024.

The U-17 AFCON in 2026, 2027, and 2028 are also open for bidding.

Finally, countries can also bid for the hosting rights of the 2027, 2029, and 2031 U-20 AFCON.

Since the 2000 AFCON, co-hosted by Nigeria and Ghana, the country of three-time African champions is yet to host the AFCON.

Overall, the last time Nigeria hosted any CAF-organised tournament was the 2016 Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations (BSAFCON).

It is left to be seen if Nigeria will bid for any of the above tournaments.