By Ghazali Ibrahim
The President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, has provided fresh details on a proposed African Nations League that is set to feature all 54 member associations across the continent.
Motsepe said the new competition will bring together Africa’s top national teams in a format designed to deliver high-profile matches such as Kenya versus Tanzania, Ghana against Nigeria, Egypt facing Morocco, and Ivory Coast taking on Cameroon.
According to him, the tournament is expected to attract the continent’s best players and offer fans exciting and competitive football.
Explaining the structure, the CAF president disclosed that the tournament will be played during FIFA international window breaks to ensure the availability of star players.
He added that the competition will be zonal-based at the initial stage, with matches grouped according to regions across Africa.
Motsepe noted that, under the proposed format, a single country within each zone will host all matches in that region. For instance, Nigeria could serve as host for West African games. At the end of the zonal phase, winners from each region will advance to a final stage, where a draw will determine the matchups as teams battle for the ultimate prize.
The CAF boss described the African Nations League as an innovative step aimed at increasing competitive games for national teams, boosting revenue, and strengthening football development across Africa.
While a date has not yet been announced, further details are expected to be released by CAF in the coming months.
