African Football Confederation Reconsiders Four-Year Africa Cup of Nations Decision, President Dismisses Claims of 'Taking Orders from FIFA and UEFA'

[Praia] Confederation of African Football President Patrice Motsepe announced on October 9 in Cape Verde that the federation is reassessing its decision to change the Africa Cup of Nations to a four-year cycle, with the possibility of reverting to the previously implemented biennial format. According to Al Jazeera, he dismissed at a press conference on the same day, in strong terms, the allegations that CAF 'takes orders from FIFA or UEFA.'

'The so-called claim that CAF is manipulated by FIFA or UEFA is "nonsense, absolute rubbish"—utter nonsense, absolute rubbish,' said Motsepe, a South African billionaire who also serves as FIFA Vice-President.

Last December, Motsepe announced that the Africa Cup of Nations would move to a four-year cycle starting from 2028, aligning with the FIFA international match calendar. The decision triggered widespread discontent during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations held in Morocco, with critics alleging that the decision catered to European interests at the expense of African interests by embedding Africa's flagship tournament into the FIFA international match calendar arrangement.

'My primary duty, my first mission, is to protect, advance and promote African interests,' Motsepe said. 'Sometimes I have to stand firm and tell the other side, "Listen, we will fight for our position on this issue."' He revealed that the federation 'discussed this over the past few days and is reviewing all options, including restoring the biennial format. We are well aware of that.'

On October 8, the 54 CAF members reiterated their 'unanimous' support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino, and Motsepe, who also serves as FIFA Vice-President, relayed at the meeting that Infantino had outlined to this key voting bloc his record of investment in African football during his ten years at the helm of FIFA.

Regarding the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, Motsepe confirmed that the tournament remains on schedule to be held in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. French media recently reported that venue construction was lagging behind, and claimed that some CAF members were pushing to change the host country. Motsepe reaffirmed that it would proceed as planned, but there has been no independent verification of the actual state of local venue construction.

'You must believe in Africa,' he said. 'There will be problems, there will be failures, that is okay, but we will be there. This is the lesson Mandela taught us.'

The Confederation of African Football has not yet formally announced a final decision, and whether the format will revert to biennial remains subject to further confirmation.