The 2027 edition will be held in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, CAF President Patrice Motsepe said at a press conference in Cairo. Egypt and Senegal also applied.

The Moroccan Football Federation welcomed an "exciting news" on X (ex-Twitter) adding: "Get ready for an unforgettable tournament".

Morocco will host an African Cup of Nations (AFCON) for the first time since 1988. He had been designated for 2015 before requesting a postponement because of the spread of the Ebola virus. But CAF had finally decided to withdraw this attribution and disqualify the Moroccan team from the competition, in favor of Equatorial Guinea.

The kingdom benefited this time from the withdrawal of all other candidacies - Algeria, Zambia, joint candidacy of Nigeria and Benin -, said Patrice Motsepe.

"The main reason is to support Morocco in its bid for the 2030 World Cup," together with Spain and Portugal, the CAF president said. "Our job is to make sure that Africa is united. We have taken the decision to grant the 54 votes of the African continent to Morocco," he insisted.

Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile submitted a competing joint application.

Back to the East

For the CAN, the confederation has also "imposed very high standards in terms of infrastructure". "We are convinced that we can do better," said Patrice Motsepe.

Another criterion, the CAN should not be held twice in a row in the same region of Africa, with some exceptions, he said.

At the end of September 2022, he had to go to Guinea to withdraw from this country the award of the CAN 2023 - which will finally take place in early 2024 in Côte d'Ivoire - because of "infrastructure and equipment not adapted or ready".

"One of the key objectives is that the decision that has been taken today" promotes "the development of infrastructure and stadiums" and "is a source of enthusiasm among young people," Motsepe said.

On Tuesday, Algeria said it was withdrawing its candidacy. "This withdrawal is motivated by the new approach of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) relating to the development strategy of football in Algeria," she wrote, the same day as the installation of its new president, Walid Sadi.

The FAF "will now focus its efforts on the reorganization and revitalization of football in Algeria, as well as it reiterates its unwavering commitment to the development of African football," she said.

The 2027 edition, with the designation of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, will be played for the first time in East Africa since the 1976 edition in Ethiopia.

The CAN, a competition created in 1957, brings together every two years the 24 African national teams that have validated their ticket during qualifying phases involving the 54 member nations of CAF.

© 2023 AFP