AFCON to expand to 28 teams from 2027 edition as CAF announces new format

The Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will expand from 24 to 28 teams beginning with the 2027 tournament, Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Dr Patrice Motsepe has announced.

Speaking to the media in Johannesburg on Wednesday, Dr Motsepe confirmed that CAF has approved the expansion as part of efforts to increase participation and provide more African nations with the opportunity to compete on the continent’s biggest football stage.

The 2027 edition of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations, which will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, will therefore feature four additional teams compared to the current 24-team format.

Under the new competition structure, the 28 participating nations will be divided into seven groups of four teams each.

The top two teams from every group will automatically progress to the knockout stage, while the remaining spots in the Round of 16 will be completed by the two best third-placed teams across all groups.

The decision marks another major change to the AFCON format after CAF increased the number of participating teams from 16 to 24 ahead of the 2019 tournament in Egypt.

The expansion is expected to provide more opportunities for national teams across Africa, while also increasing the competitiveness and commercial appeal of the continental championship.

AFCON 2027 will be the first edition to be hosted in East Africa, with Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania preparing to stage the tournament as joint hosts.

CAF believes the expanded format will contribute to the continued growth of African football by allowing more countries to compete at the highest level while giving emerging football nations greater exposure on the international stage.