CAF confirms competition timeline and calendar for 2026/27 season

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has unveiled its competitions calendar for the 2026/27 season, with Ghana set to host the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations as the continent prepares for a busy year of international and club football.

The calendar stretches across the entire season, beginning with the TotalEnergies CAF Futsal Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco in October 2026 and concluding with the senior Africa Cup of Nations in East Africa in June and July 2027.

Ghana’s hosting of the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations is one of the major highlights of the schedule. The tournament is expected to take place between February and March 2027, bringing together some of Africa’s leading young footballers.

The competition will provide an important platform for emerging talent and will also serve as a key stage in the development of players hoping to establish themselves at senior international level.

Morocco will host the Futsal Africa Cup of Nations in October 2026, marking the opening of CAF’s major competitions for the new season.

The CAF Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations will follow in November and December 2026, with Senegal confirmed as host nation.

South Africa will then stage the CAF Women’s Champions League in November 2026, continuing the growth of women’s club football on the continent.

The men’s youth competitions will take centre stage in the first half of 2027, with Ghana hosting the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations in February and March before Morocco stages the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations in April and May.

The calendar will reach its biggest event in June and July 2027 when Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda jointly host the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations.

The tournament will bring together Africa’s leading senior men’s national teams for the continent’s flagship football competition.

The 2027 AFCON will also represent the culmination of a packed CAF season, with continental competitions running almost continuously from October 2026 through July 2027.

The CAF U-20 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations remains the only major tournament on the calendar without confirmed dates, with Egypt listed as the host and the schedule still to be determined.

The spread of competitions reflects CAF’s increasingly extensive continental programme, covering men’s and women’s football as well as futsal and beach soccer.

For Ghana, attention will be particularly focused on preparations for the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations. Hosting the tournament will give the country an opportunity to showcase its football infrastructure while also providing the national U-20 team with the advantage of playing on home soil.

The 2026/27 calendar therefore promises a particularly busy period for African football, with major tournaments involving senior national teams, youth sides and clubs taking place across different regions of the continent.

The season will ultimately build towards the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, bringing the continental football calendar to a close in East Africa.