December 18 – The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has secured its most extensive European broadcast footprint to date for the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Morocco 2025, concluding 20 separate media rights agreements covering more than 30 territories across the continent.
The tournament, which kicks off in just three days’ time, will now be available to millions of viewers across Europe. The scale of the deals represents a significant step in CAF’s longer-term strategy to position African football as a consistent part of the global football calendar rather than a niche, tournament-only product.
The headline agreement remains the United Kingdom deal with Channel 4, which will show all 52 matches free-to-air for the first time. In Spain, CAF has moved AFCON onto Movistar, placing the competition on one of the country’s more established sports platforms – a decision shaped in part by Spain’s close footballing links with North Africa and a sizeable Moroccan diaspora.
Free-to-air exposure has also been expanded in several markets. AFCON will return to Greek television via ERT after a long absence, while Norway will show the tournament on free-to-air television for the first time through VGTV.
Elsewhere, established partners such as Sport Italia and Ziggo Sport are expected to build on strong audiences delivered at the previous edition, particularly in markets with significant North African communities and a growing presence of African players such as Ademola Lookman, Franck Zambo Anguissa and formerly Victor Osimhen in domestic leagues.
Coverage across central Europe will again be handled by SportDigital in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, while deals in eastern and south-eastern Europe, Türkiye and Israel round out CAF’s most geographically diverse European distribution to date. IMG supported CAF in delivering the agreements.
Morocco 2025 will feature 24 teams, 52 matches and nine stadiums, with the tournament taking place at an unusual winter slot that avoids direct competition with major European domestic fixtures.
For CAF, the breadth of European exposure is as much about long-term positioning as short-term audiences – reinforcing AFCON’s status as a major international competition, while strengthening commercial leverage ahead of future rights cycles.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [email protected]