CAF president supports Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda for successful 2027 AFCON hosting

Patrice Motsepe, the head of African football, acknowledged on Saturday that Morocco's organisation of the Cup of Nations has set a higher standard for the event, yet he rejected concerns regarding East Africa's preparedness to stage the 2027 version.

"This edition has been the most triumphant in the tournament's history - the level of play has reached global standards, just like the stadiums and facilities," Motsepe stated to journalists in Rabat ahead of the AFCON final on Sunday pitting the hosts against Senegal.

Morocco is preparing to jointly host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal, and might bid to organise the proposed 2028 AFCON as additional preparation.

The Confederation of African Football leader Motsepe mentioned receiving interest from numerous nations eager to host 2028, while affirming that the 2027 Cup of Nations remains scheduled for Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

These nations co-hosted the previous year's African Nations Championship - a competition featuring national squads composed solely of domestic players - though it was delayed from early in the year until August to permit further improvements to venues.

"Leadership involves confronting challenging and tough choices that must be made," remarked the South African.

"My responsibility is to advance football across the entire continent - I cannot limit it to nations with superior facilities alone, but I am assured that the AFCON in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania will prove highly successful.

"We will not relocate the event from these countries."

This will mark the inaugural AFCON in the area since Ethiopia's hosting in 1976, occurring right before the competition adopts a quadrennial schedule - it has typically run biennially since its debut in 1957.

Motsepe revealed that significant shift just before the tournament in Morocco and on Saturday maintained it was not a yield to influences from major European clubs or FIFA, the global governing body.

"Africans must liberate themselves from the notion that our choices stem from FIFA's directives or Europe's views," he explained, adding that "occasionally concessions are necessary."