CAF’s four-year AFCON cycle derailed proposed $1 billion rights deal
CAF says its decision to move the Africa Cup of Nations to a four-year schedule materially changed a commercial-rights tender that had been expected to secure at least $1 billion over eight years.
In short
- CAF says its decision to move the Africa Cup of Nations to a four-year schedule materially changed a commercial-rights tender that had been expected to secure at least $1 billion over eight years.
The Confederation of African Football’s decision to stage the Africa Cup of Nations every four years led it to abandon a commercial-rights process that had been expected to secure at least $1 billion over eight years, according to a report published on 7 August 2026.
CAF communications head Luxolo September said the executive committee’s unanimous decision on 20 December 2025 materially changed the rights available under the 2025 tender, preventing that process from continuing in its existing form. The original package covered CAF’s wider competition portfolio and was discussed publicly as a potential eight-year, $1 billion partnership.
CAF has since opened a new tender for marketing and commercial rights to the 2028, 2032 and 2036 AFCON tournaments. Bid books are due by 24 August 2026.
The governing body has not had a long-term commercial agreement securing its financial future since 2019, when a previous contract with Lagardère was terminated. CAF later paid a $50 million settlement over that termination.
Reducing the number of AFCON tournaments in an eight-year window changes the value and structure of the rights on offer. The new tender will test whether CAF can replace the abandoned package while operating the continental championship on its revised schedule.
