The growth of African football: the success of the 2025 AFCON and future challenges

African football has reached a historic milestone with the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which recorded the highest revenues in the history of the competition. According to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the earnings were record-breaking, far surpassing those of previous editions. This success not only reflects the growth of football in Africa but also demonstrates how sporting events can attract significant investments and improve the image of the continent.

The success of the 2025 AFCON

The 2025 AFCON, hosted in Morocco, was an economic success thanks to a targeted strategy of global broadcasting and sponsorship agreements. The CAF secured partnerships with European broadcasters and other international platforms, ensuring unprecedented coverage. This created a predictable and attractive environment for investors, who saw the tournament as a long-term opportunity.

The success of the 2025 AFCON contrasts with other major African sporting events, such as the 2023 African Games in Ghana and the 2023 African Nations Championship in Algeria. Although both events were well-organized, they suffered from the lack of a dedicated commercial arm to attract private partners. Ghana and Algeria funded much of the expenses with public funds, failing to fully leverage the economic benefits typically derived from hosting events of this caliber.

Future challenges

To ensure that future events, such as the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Senegal, the 2027 African Games in Egypt, and the matches of the 2030 World Cup in Morocco, have the same economic impact, a unified approach is necessary. Currently, organizations like the African Olympic Council (ANOCA) and the African Union Sports Council (AUSC) lack an effective commercial structure, limiting their ability to attract private investments.

A unified solution

A possible solution is the creation of a Unified African Football Committee, composed of representatives from the CAF, ANOCA, and AUSC. This committee would be tasked with:

  • Negotiating sponsorship agreements using the CAF as a model.
  • Standardizing commercial guidelines to create stability for investors.
  • Planning post-event use of the infrastructure built for the tournaments, ensuring a lasting impact.

This unified approach would not only improve the ability to attract investments but also reduce the inconsistencies among African sporting events, making them more predictable and attractive to commercial partners.

The success of the 2025 AFCON demonstrates that African football has enormous economic potential. However, to fully leverage this potential, a collaborative approach among the continent's major sports organizations is necessary. By working together, they can transform one-off events into long-term investments that will improve both the economy and the image of Africa.

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The economic potential of African football and future challenges

The success of the 2025 AFCON has highlighted the economic potential of African football, but to sustain this growth, it is crucial to address various structural and strategic challenges. The lack of a unified approach among the continent's major sports organizations represents one of the main obstacles.

The need for integrated sports governance

The fragmentation among African sports organizations—such as the CAF, AUSC, and ANOCA—creates inefficiencies that limit the ability to attract investments. For example, while the CAF has demonstrated the ability to negotiate high-level sponsorship agreements, other organizations lack dedicated commercial structures. This creates a gap between sporting events that can leverage economic potential and those that rely primarily on public funding.

An integrated governance system could standardize commercial practices, creating a more predictable and attractive environment for investors. This would include:

  • Clear guidelines for commercial partnerships
  • Structures for evaluating economic impact
  • Mechanisms for transparent reporting

The development of sports infrastructure

One of the critical aspects for the future of African sports is the management of infrastructure built for international events. Many stadiums and sports facilities remain underutilized after tournaments, representing an ineffective investment. The proposed unified committee could:

  • Develop post-event usage plans for infrastructure
  • Promote public-private management models
  • Create long-term maintenance programs

The role of digital technologies

To maximize the economic potential of African sports, it is essential to integrate digital technologies into commercial processes. This would include:

  • Digital platforms for managing partnerships
  • Data analysis tools for performance evaluation
  • Online ticketing and merchandising systems

Adopting these technologies could significantly increase the commercial revenues of sporting events, making them more sustainable in the long term.

The future of African football

The success of the 2025 AFCON represents just the beginning of a broader economic potential for African football. To fully realize this potential, it is necessary to:

  • Strengthen collaboration among sports organizations
  • Develop commercial capabilities across all organizations
  • Create an integrated sports ecosystem
  • Invest in infrastructure and technologies

With a strategic and collaborative approach, African football can transform from an occasional event to a sustainable economic engine for the continent.

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