OFFICIAL: CAF announces $2 million increase in prize money for winner of the 2025/26 CAF Champions League

The Confédération Africaine de Football has officially announced a significant boost in prize money for its two major inter-club competitions ahead of the 2025/2026 season.

CAF President Patrice Motsepe confirmed that the winners of both the CAF Champions League and the CAF Confederation Cup will benefit from increased financial rewards.

Under the new structure, the champions of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League for the 2025 and 2026 campaign will receive USD 6 million. This represents a 50 per cent rise from the previous amount. Meanwhile, the winners of the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup will take home USD 4 million, marking a 100 per cent increase in prize money.

The latest announcement highlights the steady growth in financial rewards since Dr Motsepe assumed leadership of CAF. Over the past five years, the prize money for the CAF Champions League winner has climbed from USD 2.5 million to USD 6 million, representing an increase of 140 per cent. During the same period, the reward for the Confederation Cup winner has grown from USD 1.250 million to USD 4 million, reflecting a 220 per cent rise.

With the new adjustments, the combined prize money and solidarity payments distributed to African clubs will now exceed USD 42 million per season. This marks a 114 percent increase compared to the amount allocated when Dr Motsepe was elected CAF President. In 2021, CAF distributed a total of USD 18.8 million in prize money to participating clubs.

The move forms part of CAF’s broader effort to strengthen African club competitions and make them more competitive on the global stage. In August 2024, Dr Motsepe announced that teams eliminated during the preliminary stages of the CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup would each receive USD 50,000 in financial support.

That support package was further improved in 2025 when CAF doubled the amount to USD 100,000 for clubs knocked out in the early rounds. The enhanced incentives have contributed to increased interest in the competitions, with a record 130 clubs from across Africa entering the 2025 and 2026 season of both tournaments.