The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has voted for Morocco to host the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) international soccer tournament, while the 2027 edition will be jointly staged by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania.
Morocco replaces Guinea, which lost the rights to host the tournament in October 2022 after CAF had concerns relating to infrastructure and facilities.
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Zambia and a joint Nigeria-Benin bid were also competing to host in 2025 but withdrew to allow Morocco to prove it is ready to host the World Cup for Africa, with the country jointly bidding for the 2030 edition with Spain and Portugal.
Patrice Motsepe, president of the CAF, said that the decisions had been based on the level of infrastructure made available by bids, including facilities, accommodation, and hospitals.
He said: "The decision that was taken today was to focus on African unity, development, and growth, in the context of those countries withdrawing.
"A huge amount of money is being spent on Morocco for 2025. The bid from Morocco to host the World Cup is not just for Morocco, but for the whole of Africa."
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By GlobalDataMorocco has only staged AFCON on one previous occasion in 1988.
Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania's 2027 tournament will be the first held by countries from the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (Cecafa) since Ethiopia in 1976.
Algeria withdrew from the race to host AFCON on the eve of the vote, having applied for both the 2025 and 2027 editions of the tournament.
The newly-elected president of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) Walid Sadi announced on state TV that the country was withdrawing, motivated by a "new approach to the football development strategy in Algeria."
The FAF said it now plans to "focus its efforts on the reorganization and revitalization of football in Algeria."
The next AFCON, meanwhile, will take place in the Ivory Coast from January 13 to February 11, 2024.
