Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has approved his country’s bid to host the 2026 Confederation of African Football (CAF) Awards ceremony, the Nigeria Football Federation announced on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.
Tinubu also endorsed Nigeria’s proposal to host the CAF 48th Ordinary General Assembly, scheduled for October, following a meeting with CAF President Patrice Motsepe in Nairobi. Other officials present at the meeting included Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Samson Adamu, Ibrahim Gusau and Amaju Pinnick.
The CAF Ordinary General Assembly is expected to convene presidents of CAF’s 54 member associations alongside representatives from zonal unions and senior football administrators from across the continent.
The CAF Awards is one of African football’s most prominent annual events, recognising the continent’s standout players, coaches and football administrators. Nigeria last hosted the ceremony in January 2017, when Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez claimed the men’s Player of the Year award and Nigeria’s own Asisat Oshoala won the women’s prize.
Should the bids succeed, Nigeria would be returning to the centre of African football’s administrative and ceremonial calendar nearly a decade after its last hosting role. CAF is expected to announce its final host city decisions for both events in the coming months.
