The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) has announced the kick-off and final dates for CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027, which will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
According to CAF, the opening match will be played on Saturday, 19th June 2027, and the final on Saturday, 17th July 2027.
The dates were approved by the FIFA Council recently in Vancouver, Canada. CAF will announce the country that will host the opening match and the final in due course.
The TotalEnergies CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 is the first AFCON to be hosted by three countries, presenting a unique opportunity for CAF and African football to reach over 400 million people in the East Africa region.
With the preliminary round completed, the journey to Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will continue with the draw for the qualifiers of the CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027, which will take place on May 19th, 2026.
A total of 48 teams, including the three co-hosts, will participate in the qualifiers. The draw will determine the pathway to the CAF Africa Cup of Nations PAMOJA 2027.
The qualifiers will be played across the three FIFA international windows as follows: Matchdays 1 and 2 on September 21 to October 6, 2026; Matchdays 3 and 4 on November 9 to 17, 2026; and Matchdays 5 and 6 on March 22 to 30, 2027
The 48 teams will be drawn into 12 groups of four teams each. The top two teams in each group will qualify for the final tournament.
The CAF AFCON PAMOJA 2027 also marks the competition’s return to the East African region for the first time since Ethiopia hosted the AFCON in 1976.
The tournament will build on the success of recent editions, including the CAF AFCON Morocco 2025 and the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON Côte d’Ivoire 2023, which delivered record commercial revenue, sponsorship growth and global broadcast audiences, reflecting the global competitiveness and popularity of African football on the world stage.
By Anita Omwenga
