AFCON 2025: FIFA slows preparations for African nations

Original crime: steal June, impose December

Let’s start by establishing the facts. The AFCON 2025 was initially supposed to be played in June-July, like any major international competition. The Euro is played in summer. The Copa América is played in summer. Even the CONCACAF Gold Cup is played in summer. But the AFCON ? No.

Why? Because Gianni Infantino has decided to impose his new formula for the Club World Cup - 32 teams, one billion dollars in funding - from June 14 to July 13, 2025. In the US, obviously. Because when it comes to choosing between Africa and America, Zurich’s choice is always the same.

Result: CAF, faithful to its posture of chronic submission, accepted without flinching to postpone its flagship competition to December 21. In the middle of a European winter. During Boxing Day. In the middle of the championships. And now, are we surprised that European clubs are reluctant to release their players?

« FIFA imposed its schedule, and we have to deal with it »

— Nassim El Kerf, Moroccan journalist, Jeune Afrique

The betrayal of November 29

What happened on November 29, 2025, will remain in the annals as one of the most beautiful demonstrations of institutional contempt towards African football.

On that day, the European Club Association (ECA) met with FIFA. Without  CAF. Without the African federations. Without the relevant breeders. And in the utmost secrecy, an agreement has been reached: the clubs will be able to keep their players until December 15th instead of the 8th.

Seven days stolen. Seven days less preparation. Seven days during which the African selections had already booked their infrastructures, scheduled their friendly matches, and incurred significant expenses.

FIFA justifies its decision by invoking "the same principle used for the 2022 World Cup".  Let us recall that this World Cup in Qatar benefited from a consecrated international window, several weeks of preparation, and a completely redesigned European calendar for the occasion. Double standards.

«When we say that Africa and the CAF are colonized, we are told that we are exaggerating. Look at this humiliation...»

— Osasu Obayiuwana, Nigerian journalist


The impossible equation of the breeders

Patrice Beaumelle, coach of Angola, 'exploded' in the face of this decision. And we understand him.  Palancas Negras were supposed to start their preparation on 8 December in the Algarve, with two friendly matches scheduled for 13 and 16 December. Everything needs to be redone.

"The AFCON  must be more respected," he hammered on RMC. A simple sentence. An obvious one. And yet, a revolution in the current context.

Because here is the equation that African selectors must solve: recover players tired from a first part of an intense season, integrate them into a tactical system in 48 to 72 hours, and launch them into a competition where every detail counts. During this time, some teams with more 'local' staff will have had two weeks in advance.

Sports equality? A concept clearly reserved for European competitions.

The Benatia case: when ours turn their backs on us
And then there is the case of Medhi Benatia. The former international and Moroccan captain, four AFCON on the counter, now sports director of Olympique de Marseille. Guest of the After Foot on RMC, he chose his side: that of his club.

" The 2025, you knew it from the beginning", he says to justify keeping Nayef Aguerd and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang until the match against Monaco on December 14th. Translation: the interests of OM come before those of African selections. Even when one is Moroccan. Even when his country organizes the competition.

This posture perfectly illustrates the structural problem of African football: even its former ambassadors, once they have passed over to the other side of the mirror, adopt the reflexes of the system that marginalizes us.

CAF complicit in its silence

But the most scandalous in this matter is the deafening silence of the CAF. Patrice Motsepe, its president, did not say a word. Véron Mosengo-Omba, its Congolese secretary-general, did not flinch. The African body took the affront without reacting.

Yet, CAF has 54 votes at FIFA. Fifty-four federations. The most important block in world football. A considerable political strike force... never used.

“When it comes to FIFA elections, Africa matters. When it comes to respecting the AFCON, we are forgotten,"

 an observer of continental football bitterly summarizes. The formula is cruel. It is mostly true.

The double penalty: television rights and humiliation

As if that were not enough, another controversy strikes the AFCON 2025: that of broadcasting rights. French and Arabic national channels were allowed to negotiate only 33 of the 52 matches. Meanwhile, the English-speaking channels and a private non-African channel have the entirety of the matches.

Let’s summarize: the AFCON 2025 is played in Africa, is funded by African states, brings together African teams... but a part of the continent will not be able to watch it on its free national channels. Kafka would have loved it.

What we demand

Here is what African football has a right to demand:

1. An international window consecrated for the AFCON, in the same way as the Euro or the Copa América. Non-negotiable.

2. Financial compensation for the federations affected by last-minute calendar changes.

3. A mandatory consultation of the CAF for any decision impacting African football.

4. An equitable distribution of TV rights, ensuring free access to African populations.