The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) has confirmed that the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will run from June 19 to July 17, with the tournament set to make history as the first edition co-hosted by three countries, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
The dates were ratified by the FIFA Council at its recent meeting in Vancouver, Canada. CAF said the host country for both the opening match and the final will be announced separately once planning among the three nations is finalised.
The tournament, officially branded AFCON PAMOJA 2027, will also expand to 28 teams, up from the 24 that contested the Morocco 2025 edition, a format change that CAF president Patrice Motsepe secured after successfully fighting off attempts to delay the tournament to 2028 over infrastructure concerns. The word “Pamoja,” meaning “together” in Swahili, reflects the cross-border nature of the hosting arrangement.
The qualification draw takes place on May 19, 2026, with 48 nations, including the three co-hosts, drawn into 12 groups of four teams. The top two from each group will advance to the final tournament. Qualifying matches will be played across three FIFA international windows: September 21 to October 6, 2026; November 9 to 17, 2026; and March 22 to 30, 2027.
The 2027 edition marks AFCON’s return to East Africa for the first time since Ethiopia hosted the tournament in 1976, a gap of 51 years. CAF said the tri-nation hosting arrangement presents an opportunity to bring the competition within reach of more than 400 million people across the East African region.
Stadiums under consideration for the opening and final include Kenya’s new 60,000-seat Talanta Stadium in Nairobi, Tanzania’s Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam, and Uganda’s modernised Mandela National Stadium.
