Closing the bidding door.. CAF awaits settling broadcast rights for African club competitions through 2028

CAF closes bidding amid anticipation for new partners in sub-Saharan Africa

Africa Today at 11:27

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Closing the bidding door.. CAF awaits settling broadcast rights for African club competitions through 2028

The Confederation of African Football CAF reached a crucial commercial deadline on Wednesday 11 November 2026 as bidding closed for the media rights to its major club competitions across sub-Saharan Africa.

Interested broadcasters had until 15:00 GMT to submit their offers for a package covering the CAF Champions League, CAF Confederation Cup, CAF Super Cup and CAF Women's Champions League through 2028.

But the deadline does not mean the rights have already been awarded.

CAF has yet to publicly identify successful bidders or announce when the contracts will be finalised, leaving an important question unanswered: who will broadcast Africa's leading club competitions when the group stage begins later this month?

Only 16 days before the Champions League returns

The timing makes this tender particularly significant.

According to CAF's official competition calendar, the group stages of both the Champions League and Confederation Cup begin between 27 and 29 November.

That leaves just 16 days between the bidding deadline and the first scheduled group stage matches.

The immediate priority now shifts from receiving offers to determining which broadcasters will obtain the available rights and completing the arrangements necessary to deliver coverage.

The process may involve evaluating proposals, clarifying commercial terms and finalising agreements. However, CAF has not publicly disclosed the number of bidders, the financial value of their offers or a timetable for announcing the successful companies.

The short interval is therefore commercially important, although it does not establish that coverage will be delayed or interrupted.

Which broadcasting rights are available?

The tender announced by CAF on 2 November covers the Champions League and Confederation Cup for 2026, 2027 and 2028, alongside the 2027 and 2028 editions of the Super Cup and Women's Champions League.

The available rights include English-language pay television and local-language coverage in sub-Saharan Africa, as well as free-to-air broadcasting in all languages.

Two important categories are excluded:

All Middle East and North Africa MENA rights
French language pay TV rights

As Foot Africa previously examined, the exclusion of MENA means the current bidding process does not determine which channels will carry the competitions in countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.

It also does not cover the Africa Cup of Nations whose commercial rights are being handled through separate processes.

Circle your picks. Matchday 3 has some interesting fixtures! 🤩 #TotalEnergiesAFCONQ2027 https://t.co/G3UVdV46MQ
— CAF (@CAF_Online) November 11, 2026

What happens after the deadline?

The next major development will be the identification of the successful broadcasters and confirmation of the territories and coverage included in their agreements.

For viewers, the distinction between free to air and subscription coverage is particularly important. The outcome could determine how easily supporters across different African markets can access the continent's leading club competitions.

For CAF, the challenge is to secure commercial value while ensuring that broadcast arrangements are in place ahead of the new group stage.

This article follows our newsroom’s editorial standards. To learn more about how we create and fact-check our content, see our Editorial Policy .

Khaled Hegazy |

Editorar, en

Journaliste sportif spécialisé dans la couverture du football et la création de contenu numérique, alliant expérience éditoriale et expertise des médias sociaux.