The Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF) has appointed Media Experts Limited (MEL) and Media Business Solutions (UK) Ltd (MBS) as the exclusive free-to-air (FTA) broadcast rights holder for the 2027 CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and all other CAF events across sub-Saharan Africa.
The appointment follows a competitive invitation to tender launched by CAF in August 2026 for free to-air and Pay-TV rights across the region. It completes the broadcast picture for the tournament in sub-Saharan Africa alongside the Pay-TV agreement announced earlier this month.
Under the agreement, MEL and MBS will build a network of national and regional free-to-air broadcasters to deliver live coverage of the CAF AFCON tournament to over 500 million households. Free-to-air coverage will be secured in all three host nations – Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania – and in the continent’s largest football markets, including Nigeria and South Africa. Broadcast partners in each territory will be announced in the coming months.
The deal also includes Futsal Africa Cup of Nations 2026, CAF Africa Beach Soccer Cup of Nations 2026, CAF Africa U-20 Cup of Nations 2027, CAF Africa U-17 Cup of Nations 2027, and CAF Africa U-20 Cup of Nations 2027. The flagship 2027 CAF tournament, African Cup of Nations, which runs from 19 June to 17 July 2027, will be the first AFCON co-hosted by three nations and the first staged in East Africa since Ethiopia in 1976.
It is also the first edition with AFCON: Africa’s number one sporting event AFCON’s audience is growing at speed. CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe said nearly two billion people watched AFCON 2023 (celebrated in 2024) in Côte d’Ivoire.
The 2025 edition in Morocco generated a record 3.6 billion viewers worldwide and 6 billion combined with digital views across social platforms. Preliminary research released by CAF shows a 61% increase in viewership in Europe, Asia and South America.
At home, free-to-air television remains the main gateway to the game for many fans. In GeoPoll’s Africa Football Survey 2026, 96% of respondents in Nigeria and Kenya, and 91% in Ghana said they follow football, and free-to-air TV was the leading way to watch live matches in Nigeria, cited by 64% of respondents.
Kunle Falodun, CEO, Media Experts Limited, said, “Free-to-air television is where Africa watches its biggest moments together, and AFCON is the biggest football moment we have. CAF’s decision affirms our belief that the Africa Cup of Nations belongs on every screen, in every home, in every market.
For brands and corporate sponsors, it is an opportunity to stand alongside Africa’s most watched national-team competition with the reach and trust that only free-to-air delivers.”
Richard Dimosi Diasolwa, CEO, Media Business Solutions (UK) Ltd, said, “This is a proud day for MBS and a great day for every African football fan. We distributed AFCON 2023 in Côte d’Ivoire and saw first-hand what happens when the tournament reaches every home: streets go quiet, living rooms fill up and whole nations watch together.
Now, with CAF’s trust and alongside our partner MEL, we are going bigger. AFCON PAMOJA 2027 will be free, live and everywhere, from Nairobi to Lagos, from Kinshasa to Johannesburg. To broadcasters, this is your chance to carry the continent’s flagship tournament to your entire audience.
Demosi
To brands, there is no better stage to meet hundreds of millions of passionate fans. Let’s make 2027 the most widely available AFCON in history.”
