Burkina Faso unveils 20-team Ligue de la souverainete to strengthen football pathway

Burkina Faso’s government has approved plans for a new 20-team competition, the Ligue de la souverainete, aimed at expanding high-level football across the country and developing the next generation of players.

The proposal was adopted by the Council of Ministers on Thursday, 8 October 2026. It forms part of the Presidential Initiative for the Development and Promotion of Sporting Elite, according to Annick Lydie Ouattara, the Minister of Sports, Youth and Employment.

The competition is intended to bring top-level football closer to the country’s different sporting regions and provide a more balanced geographical spread of sporting opportunities nationwide.

“From an organisational point of view, we will have 20 teams, with one team from each region, three teams for the Kadiogo region and two teams for the Guiriko region,” said Ouattara.

The government says the new league will support the development of emerging talent while helping to promote Burkina Faso’s sporting elite.