Morocco is clearly not done hosting major African football competitions. Meeting as its executive committee, the Confederation of African Football has officially awarded the Kingdom hosting rights for the Africa Cup of Nations for players under 17, with the 2027 edition set for April and May. The decision confirms, once again, the central role Morocco has come to occupy in hosting the continent’s biggest football gatherings.
The decision fits into a broader distribution of youth competitions for 2027 unveiled by CAF following its meeting. Alongside Morocco, host of the U17 Cup, Ghana will organize the TotalEnergies CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations in February and March 2027, while Egypt will host the U23 tournament that same year. This last competition carries particular weight, as it will double as the continental qualifying tournament for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
With these three designations, CAF has spread the organization of its main youth competitions across three countries with proven experience hosting major African events, a distribution that reflects the continental body’s intent to professionalize the long term development of its young talent.
In its official statement, CAF highlighted significant progress made in developing its youth competitions, which it considers a core pillar of its strategy for the future of African football. Morocco’s selection to host the 2027 U17 Cup fits squarely into that logic, with the tournament representing a key step in scouting and developing the continent’s young talent, players often destined to later join senior national teams or move to leading European clubs.
CAF also indicated it is exploring the feasibility of launching a new U17 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, with the goal of introducing the competition as early as next year, provided the necessary sporting and organizational conditions are met.
This new hosting assignment adds to an already packed continental calendar for the Kingdom. Morocco will host the TotalEnergies CAF Futsal Africa Cup of Nations 2026 from October 12th to 21st, while the country has also organized the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations for several years running. Meanwhile, the 2026 Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations will be held in Senegal in November.
This latest award raises an interesting question in light of comments made in June by Fouzi Lekjaa, who at the time suggested the Kingdom was stepping back somewhat from hosting major senior competitions, while adding, we agreed to host it because everything is ready, and it costs us nothing. The awarding of the 2027 U17 Cup suggests that this pullback mainly concerned major senior tournaments, without preventing Morocco from taking on youth competitions when CAF calls on its organizational expertise.
Meeting on Thursday, African football’s governing body also reviewed several other important matters, including the organization of the CAF Super Cup, scheduled for Sunday, November 8th, 2026 in Tshwane, South Africa, between Mamelodi Sundowns, winners of the CAF Champions League, and USM Alger, holders of the CAF Confederation Cup. The executive committee also continued its work on the proposed African Nations League, whose format is currently under review, as part of a stated ambition to offer member associations international football that is more competitive, more attractive and carries greater commercial value.