AFCON 2027, Club Competitions And Youth Tournaments Headline CAF’s 2026/27 Calendar

AFCON 2027, Club Competitions And Youth Tournaments Headline CAF’s 2026/27 Calendar

By Niyi Busari 

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is set for another busy cycle of continental competition, with the 2026/27 calendar bringing together the Africa Cup of Nations, interclub tournaments and a series of youth and specialist competitions, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

The centrepiece of the calendar will be the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from June 19 to July 17, 2027.

The tournament will be historic as the first AFCON to be staged jointly by three countries. It will also mark the return of the continent's flagship men's tournament to East Africa, with CAF describing the event as a major opportunity to showcase the region's football infrastructure, culture and commercial potential.

The road to AFCON 2027 is already underway. Forty-eight teams, including the three co-hosts, are involved in the qualifying process, with the qualifiers divided into 12 groups. The first two matchdays are scheduled for September and October 2026, followed by further fixtures in November 2026 and March 2027.

Club competitions begin in September

CAF's two premier men's club competitions will also get underway early in the new season.

The 2026/27 CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup preliminary rounds are scheduled to begin on September 4–6, 2026, with return legs taking place the following weekend.

The second preliminary round will be played in October, before the group stages begin in late November. The group phase is scheduled to run through January 2027, with the knockout rounds following from February. The finals of both competitions are scheduled for the period May 9–31, 2027.

The Champions League winners will also compete for the CAF Super Cup against the Confederation Cup champions.

The 2026 Super Cup will feature Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa, the 2025/26 Champions League winners, against USM Alger of Algeria, who won the Confederation Cup. CAF has confirmed the fixture as the meeting between the winners of its two premier interclub competitions.

Youth football remains a major priority

Youth competitions will occupy an important place on the calendar, with Ghana set to host the 2027 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations.

The tournament will feature 12 teams and carries additional importance because the top four finishers will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. Ghana, a four-time champion, will stage the competition for only the second time after hosting the 1999 edition.

CAF is also continuing to develop its U-17 competition structure. Morocco hosted the 2026 U-17 AFCON under a new festival-style model that centralised matches, training and team operations around the Mohammed VI Football Complex. The approach is designed to strengthen player development as well as improve the overall tournament environment.

The 2026/27 cycle will also include the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, a competition that serves as Africa's qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games.

Futsal and beach soccer add to the schedule

CAF's calendar extends beyond traditional 11-a-side football, with continental championships in futsal and beach soccer also forming part of the programme.

Morocco is scheduled to host the Futsal AFCON, while the Beach Soccer AFCON is listed for Senegal. The exact dates for some of these competitions remain subject to CAF's final calendar confirmations. CAF's published calendar shows the futsal tournament in October and the Beach Soccer AFCON in November.

Potential expansion of CAF competitions

Beyond the competitions already established, CAF is also considering further expansion of its tournament portfolio, including the development of a U-17 Women's Africa Cup of Nations and proposals for an African Nations League.

If implemented, such competitions would add further opportunities for national teams and young players while potentially creating a more structured pathway between youth, senior and international football.

The broader direction reflects CAF's effort to make its competition calendar more predictable and commercially sustainable. With the club season now mapped out months in advance and major national-team tournaments assigned to defined windows, federations, clubs, broadcasters and supporters have greater visibility over the season ahead.

A crowded but increasingly structured calendar

The scale of the 2026/27 programme underlines the expanding reach of African football. From the Champions League and Confederation Cup to AFCON 2027 and the continent's youth, futsal and beach soccer championships, CAF's calendar will leave little room for a quiet period.

For African football, however, the significance goes beyond the number of competitions.

A more clearly structured calendar could help clubs plan their domestic seasons, allow national teams to prepare more effectively and give broadcasters and commercial partners greater certainty.

The challenge will be managing the workload for players and clubs while ensuring that the growing number of competitions does not create clashes between domestic, continental and international commitments.

For now, the direction is clear: the 2026/27 cycle promises to be one of the busiest periods in African football, culminating in the historic AFCON 2027 in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda next summer.