South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe have submitted a joint bid for the 2028 Africa Cup of Nations hosting rights.
The four nations confirmed their proposal reached CAF before the submission deadline. If successful, it would mark the first time four countries have co-hosted a single edition of the continent’s premier soccer tournament.
COSAFA Unites Behind Historic Joint Bid
Newly elected COSAFA president Tariq Babitseng confirmed the submission at the organisation’s congress in Harare on Sunday. Babitseng was elected unopposed at the same gathering, taking over from Said Ali Said Athouman of the Comoros.
He immediately made the AFCON bid a centrepiece of his vision for Southern African soccer: “I can confirm that the four football associations have put in a joint bid to host AFCON 2028,” he said.
“We submitted on time, and we have the transport routes and infrastructure to host a successful tournament.”
The bid covers the last edition of AFCON before the tournament switches to a four-yearly format. CAF president Dr Patrice Motsepe has previously encouraged regional zones to collaborate on hosting major continental competitions.
A Region That Feels Its Time Has Come
Southern Africa makes a compelling case when you examine recent AFCON hosting patterns across the continent. Cameroon staged the 2021 edition, followed by the Ivory Coast in 2023, then Morocco in 2025.
Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania will share hosting duties for the 2027 tournament in East Africa. That sequence has moved systematically through central, west, north and east Africa in succession. Southern Africa, therefore, presents itself as the natural next step in that continental rotation.
South Africa (970.12) hosted the tournament in 1996 and again in 2013, with Angola doing so in 2010. No other nation from the southern region has staged AFCON, making the collective bid all the more significant for the zone.
How The Tournament Would Be Divided
Babitseng outlined a broad framework for how the hosting duties would be split across the four nations. South Africa would carry the largest share of fixtures, given its superior stadium infrastructure. Zimbabwe and Botswana would each host one or two group stage slots, alongside a semi-final apiece.
Namibia would receive a comparable allocation to its two neighbours in the proposal. The finer details, however, remain subject to further discussion should CAF award the tournament to the region.
South Africa’s Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has been outspoken about the country’s ambitions to lead the bid. He made clear, furthermore, that South Africa wants partners who already have venues ready rather than those still planning construction.
Morocco Looms As The Bid’s Biggest Rival
The Southern Africa consortium does not have a clear run at securing the 2028 hosting rights, however. Morocco has signalled a strong interest in bidding for the same edition of the tournament. The North African nation is already co-hosting the 2030 FIFA World Cup alongside Portugal and Spain.
Hosting AFCON 2028 would accelerate Morocco’s infrastructure development ahead of that enormous commitment. McKenzie acknowledged the competition directly, noting that South Africa wants clarity on rival bids before finalising its own approach.
The precedent for multi-nation hosting exists well beyond Africa’s borders. Euro 2020 spread across 11 countries, while England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland will share Euro 2028. South Africa and its partners will now wait to see whether CAF embraces the southern zone’s moment to shine.
