Is AFCON 2027 coming home?
By Vincent Voiyoh, September 27, 2023Africa will be waiting to know today who the hosts for the next two editions of Africa’s premier football showpiece, the African Cup of Nations.
All eyes will be on the 2027 bid with the East African region brimming with ecstasy of writing history by becoming the first host to stage AFCON in three countries should the Pamoja Bid receive a clean bill of health.
Kenya/Uganda/ Tanzania (EA Pamoja Bid), Botswana, Algeria, Egypt and Senegal are all hoping to have impressed CAF honchos in their 2027 bids that were submitted mid-May this year.
With just hours to the eagerly awaited announcement today in Cairo, Egypt after the CAF Executive Committee meeting, there has been mixed reactions among football ultras and countrymen towards the ‘Unique’ East Africa Pamoja Bid.
Some football enthusiasts have poured cold water on the region’s ambition to host the rest of Africa in four years-time while others remain optimistic getting the nod from CAF.
Among the five bids before the CAF Executive Committee Members, it is only Egypt and Algeria whose bids seem viable on paper due to readily available infrastructure.
Egypt, a record African Cup Nations is seeking to host the competition for the fifth time, the recent being the 2019 edition that Algeria won after thrashing Senegal in the final.Algeria has sampled the hosting pudding before in 1990.
They want to re-affirm their position as one of the continent’s football powerhouses. They have the stadiums that meet the CAF minimum requirements and the political goodwill and they also successfully hosted the last edition of the Africa Nations Championships (CHA)N.
Morocco has for a longtime been rumored to be the favorite to get the 2025 AFCON and should that come into fruition, it would dent Egypt’s and Alrgeria’s aspirations to stage the 2027 edition considering that it is yet another North African country.
With all things constant, EA Pamoja Bid, and Senegal would remain as frontrunners for the hosting rights for two reasons, first East Africa has never hosted the continental event and would be viable for CAF to reward the region with the 2027 event, while Senegal enjoy the fact that their FA president Augustin Senghor doubles up as the CAF vice president and could pull the strings to earn his country the event, despite the fact that they would be required to build five new stadiums before then, since they only have a single facility that meets CAF’s international standards.
Football fans in the East African region have been skeptical about the lack of facilities of stage monster competitions of AFCON caliber.
Whereas, the fears could be the sad reality at the moment, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania have made tremendous steps in upgrading of available stadia construction of new facilities.
Kenya is constructing a new football only stadium named Talanta Stadium, which will be a 50,000 capacity to catapult its aspirations. Kasarani and Nyayo stadiums have been closed for top notch renovations to achieve recommended class.
Tanzania already has the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, only needing minimal polishing to be set while Amani Stadium in Zanzibar will be ready for use in December. The country is also developing new venues with a 30,000 capacity in Arusha and Dodoma.
Uganda is also way ahead in infrastructure shaping. Works at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Kampala are in top gear as well as the Akii Abua Stadium in Lira. There is a proposed new stadium in Hoima.
The EA Pamoja Bid has been fronted by all the three heads of states thus giving it a political good will for consideration when CAF officials retire to make the decisions.
Recently in an interview, Tanzania Football Federation President Wallace Karia who is also the President of CECAFA said, the region’s bid had met all the requirements needed by CAF.
“We have six venues already intact, supported with training grounds. We have an adequate transport system and hospitality.