AFCON 2025: CAF Announces Date, Venue For Qualifiers Draw

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially announced the 2025 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament draw schedule.

In its latest publication, CAF noted that the draw for the most prestigious African football tournament will take place in Johannesburg, South Africa, on July 4th.

According to CAF, the draw ceremony will be held at the SuperSport studios in South Africa.

A total of fifty-two countries will be drawn into 12 groups, each consisting of four teams, who will compete for a spot in the finals.

The qualifiers are scheduled to begin in September 2024 to determine the 24 nations that will vie for glory in Morocco 2025.

The event will be graced by selected CAF legends, representatives from the participating teams, members of the Local Organising Committee for TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025, and other dignitaries.

Cote d’Ivoire emerged victorious in the previous edition of the AFCON, narrowly defeating Nigeria 2-1 in the final.

This announcement is coming days after the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which was planned for Morocco, was rescheduled to January 2026.

Sportxparte reported earlier that the African football tournament is now being pushed back by six months because it conflicts with the larger 32-team Club World Cup.

Originally, AFCON 2025 was planned for June, but the Club World Cup, which is expanding to include 32 teams, is now scheduled to occur in the United States from June 15 to July 13.

Veron Mosengo-Omba, the general secretary of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), mentioned to the BBC that the AFCON will now be held in early 2026, recognizing the need to resolve scheduling conflicts.

Mosengo-Omba expressed worries about the well-being of players, wondering if it was possible for them to play in both the Club World Cup and the AFCON back-to-back.