The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced that the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 has emerged as the most commercially successful tournament in the history of African football, recording over a 90 per cent increase in revenues.
In a statement published on its official website on Thursday, CAF attributed the milestone to expanded sponsorship agreements, wider media rights distribution and entry into new markets, particularly across Asia.
CAF stated that the commercial success of the competition led to “over 90 per cent increase in CAF revenues for the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025,” describing the tournament as the most successful commercial story ever recorded by the continental body.
According to CAF, the growth was driven by increased partnerships, broader media coverage and deliberate expansion into new territories. The body noted that its strategy included venturing into markets such as the Far East, China and Japan, while also strengthening its presence in traditional regions.
Providing details on sponsorship growth, CAF revealed that the number of commercial partners rose from nine during the TotalEnergies AFCON Cameroon 2021 to 17 at the Côte d’Ivoire 2023 edition. For the 2025 tournament in Morocco, the number of sponsors has further increased to 23.
CAF explained that the expansion reflected both the attraction of new global brands and the retention of existing partners, adding that the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON has delivered strong returns on investment for sponsors.
The football governing body said the commercial boom followed the implementation of a deliberate, data-driven strategy adopted after the 2023 finals in Côte d’Ivoire. It noted that the Africa Cup of Nations recorded unprecedented commercial growth between 2021 and 2025, repositioning the competition as a global football property.
CAF disclosed that audience research conducted after the last edition revealed significant untapped interest across various regions, providing a clear roadmap for future commercial engagement. The insights, it said, guided a targeted focus on high-engagement regions, including China, Japan, Brazil and major European markets.
On its expanding global footprint, CAF stated that its sponsor base now spans several continents, with partners from the United States, China, Germany, Japan, Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, the United Kingdom and Turkey, while the European Union has also joined as a sponsor.
The body added that long-standing partners such as TotalEnergies, Orange, Lonaci, 1xBet, Visa, Tecno and Puma have continued their association, with AGL, Danone and Unilever also renewing their sponsorship commitments.
Elijah Adeyemi
