CAF Champions League final’s global reach grows as $6m prize awaits winner

The winner of the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League final between AS FAR and Mamelodi Sundowns will receive a record $6m first prize, underlining the growing value and status of Africa’s leading club competition.

The 2025/26 champions will be crowned in Rabat on Sunday, 24 May, when Morocco’s AS FAR host South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in the second leg of the final.

The match will be played at 20:00 local time, 19:00 GMT, with Sundowns taking a 1-0 advantage into the return leg after winning the first leg in Pretoria.

CAF says the increased prize money is part of its continued investment in the African football ecosystem, with the final now attracting wider international attention and a larger global broadcast footprint.

More than 100 territories will show the decisive match, including new markets in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

For the first time, the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League final will be broadcast live in Japan, South Korea and China on DAZN, giving the competition access to audiences that have not traditionally followed African club football on this scale.

DAZN will cover more than 25 territories, while the final will also be shown in Mexico, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.

In the United Kingdom, the match will be available for the first time on free-to-air television through Channel 4 and its digital platforms.

The expanded broadcast reach reflects the increasing appeal of the CAF Champions League, which has continued to grow in profile through bigger prize money, stronger club performances and more international media interest.

The final brings together two of the continent’s established names.

Sundowns, one of Africa’s most consistent clubs in recent years, are aiming to protect their first-leg lead and lift the trophy after another deep run in the competition.

AS FAR, backed by their home crowd in Rabat, are seeking to overturn the deficit and win the continental title on Moroccan soil.

Beyond the trophy, the record $6m prize adds another layer of importance to a final already rich in sporting and commercial significance.

It is also a sign of how far the competition has come, with CAF seeking to make its club tournaments more attractive to players, clubs, sponsors and broadcasters.

The match will also be shown through CAF’s long-standing broadcast partners.

beIN Sports will carry the final across the Middle East and North Africa, as well as France, the United States, the South Pacific and other territories.

CANAL+ will broadcast in French to more than 30 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, while SuperSport will cover 36 countries across the continent in English and Portuguese.

In Southern Africa, SABC will broadcast the match, while AZAM will show it across more than eight countries in East Africa.

In Morocco, supporters will be able to watch the final on SNRTV’s Arryadia and beIN Sports.

Other European broadcasters include Sport TV in Portugal, Megogo in Ukraine, Sport Klub in Slovenia and Croatia, and Sport TV in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

The growing list of broadcasters points to a competition increasingly seen as more than a continental event.

African club football has long produced intense rivalries, large crowds and dramatic finals, but the wider international distribution of this year’s final suggests the CAF Champions League is beginning to reach new audiences.

For CAF, the Rabat final is therefore both a football occasion and a statement about the direction of the competition.

The record prize money shows increased financial ambition, while the broadcast expansion shows that more markets are willing to carry African club football to their viewers.

For AS FAR and Sundowns, however, the focus will remain on the pitch.

Sundowns know they are 90 minutes away from turning their Pretoria victory into continental glory, while AS FAR will hope the support in Rabat can help them produce a comeback worthy of the occasion.

By the end of Sunday night, one club will lift the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League trophy and claim the biggest first prize in the competition’s history.

The size of the reward, and the scale of the audience watching around the world, will offer another sign that Africa’s premier club competition is growing in stature.