Morocco and Algeria are the frontrunners to host the 2025 and 2027 editions of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), the continent’s most prestigious football tournament. The announcement of the hosts will be made in Cairo on Wednesday by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Both North African neighbours are competing for the 2025 edition, along with Zambia and a joint bid from Nigeria and Benin. Algeria is also in the race for the 2027 edition, as well as Botswana, Egypt, Senegal and a tripartite bid from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

The decision will be based on independent assessments of each candidate, but political and regional factors may also play a role. Morocco and Algeria have a tense relationship, which spilled over into football this year when Morocco withdrew from the African Nations Championship (CHAN) for home-based players, hosted by Algeria, due to a ban on Moroccan flights over Algerian airspace.

Both countries have excellent stadiums and infrastructure, and passionate football fans, and are capable of organising world-class AFCON tournaments. However, both countries prefer to host the 2025 edition, with Morocco’s CAF vice-president Fouzi Lekjaa reportedly telling local officials that his country had already secured the hosting rights.

CAF president Patrice Motsepe, a South African billionaire, has tried to avoid taking sides in the rivalry between the two neighbours. “We must not get involved in what is happening between Algeria and Morocco. CAF should never intervene in politics,” he said during the CHAN tournament.

Motsepe has praised the organisational abilities of both countries, who have each hosted the AFCON once before, in 1988 and 1990 respectively. “Morocco has often flawlessly hosted major competitions while the CHAN in Algeria this year was the best ever,” he said.

Motsepe has also expressed his desire to rotate the hosting of the AFCON among the different regions of Africa, but CAF secretary general Veron Mosengo-Omba has admitted that this may not be feasible. “Today, only five or six countries out of the 54 CAF members are able to apply to host the African Cup. Consequently, it will not be possible to make this alternation,” he said.

The AFCON, which started in 1957 with only three teams, has grown to a 24-nation event featuring some of the best players in the world, such as Mohamed Salah, Victor Osimhen, Andre Onana, Sadio Mane and Hakim Ziyech. The hosts must have at least six stadiums, two of which must have a capacity of at least 40,000 and four of which must accommodate 20,000 or more spectators.

The next edition of the AFCON will be held in Ivory Coast in 2023/2024, after being postponed from June and July this year to January and February next year due to the rainy season. The tournament is expected to showcase the talent and diversity of African football, and foster unity and solidarity among the continent’s nations.

Source: Vanguard