A new report by Africa Sports Unified (ASU), a boutique strategic consultancy and intelligence platform focused on the pan-African sports economy, has outlined how the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 is being transformed into a major global sports and commercial property.
The Africa Cup of Nations 2025 Overview Report comes as the tournament prepares to be hosted by Morocco and staged for the first time in the December–January global football window. Featuring 24 national teams and spread across nine modernised stadiums in six Moroccan cities, AFCON 2025 is positioned as a turning point in the evolution of African football.
According to the report, AFCON 2025 is being deliberately repositioned as a premium global sports asset, underpinned by significant growth in prize money, expanded broadcast and media distribution, upgraded production standards and a long-term commercial strategy aligned with global football calendars.
The tournament winner will receive a record USD 10 million prize, drawn from a total prize pool of USD 32 million. This represents a doubling of AFCON’s financial scale compared with recent editions, signalling a shift in how the competition is valued commercially.
Broadcast reach is also set to expand substantially. AFCON 2025 will benefit from increased international exposure, including landmark free-to-air coverage in the United Kingdom via Channel 4, alongside broadcast agreements in Spain with Movistar, Portugal with Sport TV and distribution across more than 85 global markets.
In a first for the competition, AFCON 2025 will be fully produced in high dynamic range (HDR), establishing new broadcast and production benchmarks across all host venues. The report highlights this as a significant step in aligning African football with the technical standards of leading global tournaments.
Morocco’s hosting strategy is another focal point of the analysis. The report details the country’s integrated approach to stadium development, transport infrastructure, fan technology and security, all of which form part of its broader preparations for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
“AFCON 2025 represents a structural shift in how African football is positioned on the global stage,” said Gabriel Ajala, Founder of Africa Sports Unified. “This is no longer just a continental tournament, it is a global media, commercial and nation-branding platform. Our report gives governments, federations, investors, broadcasters and sponsors a single source of truth to understand where the tournament is heading and where the opportunities lie.”
The report also examines the strategic implications of AFCON’s planned move to a four-year cycle from 2028. ASU argues that the reduced frequency will increase the tournament’s scarcity and commercial value, placing greater emphasis on long-term planning by the Confederation of African Football, host nations and commercial partners.
Taken together, the findings suggest that AFCON 2025 will not only redefine the tournament’s global standing but also reshape perceptions of African football as a sophisticated, investable and internationally competitive sports property.
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