The Confederation of African Football has formally opened the bidding process for the 2028, 2032, and 2036 editions of the Africa Cup of Nations, inviting all 54 of its Member Associations to put forward their candidacies to host the continent's premier football tournament.

CAF confirmed the launch through an official statement on its website, setting in motion a decade-long race to stage Africa's flagship competition. Every Member Association is eligible to bid for any or all three editions, and the process is designed to identify hosts capable of delivering events that meet CAF's technical, commercial, and operational standards.

Expert advisers shape the framework

CAF developed its bidding framework with support from PwC, its independent expert adviser, alongside technical, financial, and external legal advisers. The body says the framework is built to guarantee a transparent, fair, and competitive selection process.

The announcement arrives less than a year before momentum builds toward the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, which Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda will jointly host. Scheduled to run from June 19 to July 17, 2027, that tournament will mark the first time AFCON has been staged across three East African nations simultaneously.

A competition with global reach

CAF has invested heavily in expanding the commercial and broadcast footprint of the Africa Cup of Nations in recent years. The tournament now draws a cumulative global television audience of more than 3.2 billion viewers, with digital platforms recording over six billion views — figures that underline its standing as one of the most-watched football competitions on the planet.

For whichever nations secure the rights to host the 2028, 2032, and 2036 editions, the prize extends well beyond football. Each successful bid will offer the host country a platform to showcase its infrastructure, tourism appeal, and capacity to organise a world-class event, welcoming the best national teams from across the continent and millions of supporters from Africa and beyond.