Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso bid to host AFCON 2032

What the report says

Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso are pursuing a joint bid to stage the 2032 Africa Cup of Nations, The Punch reported, citing AFP. According to the report, the Malian Football Federation said football officials from the three countries met Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe in New York on Saturday as part of discussions over a shared hosting proposal.

The three West African neighbours are members of the Alliance of Sahel States and are currently governed by military-led authorities following coups. The Punch noted that the countries are also facing severe insecurity linked to jihadist violence, a factor likely to draw scrutiny as they attempt to persuade CAF that they can stage Africa’s flagship men’s football tournament.

The Malian federation described the meeting with CAF as an important step in the process and said the three national associations would continue preparing a bid in line with CAF’s requirements. The effort would need to address infrastructure, security, logistics and tournament operations before any final award decision by African football’s governing body.

The report added that Burkina Faso previously hosted AFCON in 1998, while Mali hosted the competition in 2002. Niger has not hosted the tournament before. Mali reportedly has five CAF-approved stadiums; Burkina Faso received approval in 2025 for its main stadium in Ouagadougou; and Niger is working to upgrade General Seyni Kountche Stadium, which has been unable to host international matches since 2022. The next AFCON is scheduled to be jointly hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda from June 19 to July 17, 2027.