The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced that the 2025 African Nations Championship (CHAN), originally scheduled to kick off on February 1, will now take place in August 2025. The tournament, which was to be co-hosted by Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania, will be delayed to give the host countries more time to finalize preparations and ensure their infrastructure meets the required standards.
In a statement released on Tuesday, CAF confirmed the postponement, although a specific start date for the tournament has not yet been determined. The decision follows recommendations from CAF's Technical and Infrastructure experts, who assessed the progress of the host countries' preparations and advised that additional time was necessary to ensure the venues, training facilities, and accommodations were fully ready for the tournament.
The CHAN, a competition designed to highlight homegrown talent by featuring only players from domestic leagues, is of significant importance to the host nations, especially Uganda, which had been eager to make a strong showing in the tournament. The Cranes were preparing to advance beyond the group stages for the first time in CHAN history and had arranged two international friendlies as part of their final preparations. Uganda was set to play Niger in Rwanda on January 18, followed by a match against DR Congo in the UAE on January 24.
Despite the delay, CAF President Dr. Patrice Motsepe expressed confidence in the progress made by the host countries. "I am impressed with the ongoing construction and renovations of the football infrastructure and facilities in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda," said Motsepe. "I am confident that the stadiums, training fields, hotels, hospitals, and other infrastructure will meet the requisite CAF standards for hosting a very successful CHAN in August 2025."
The CHAN tournament will feature 19 teams, competing across various venues in Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. Although the precise start date for the tournament in August remains to be confirmed, CAF assured that the draw for the competition would still take place on January 15, 2025.
This postponement comes just a week after Uganda's head coach, Paul Joseph Put, announced a provisional squad of 36 players for the tournament. Despite the delay, Uganda’s national team, the Cranes, remain focused on their preparations and are determined to make the most of the additional time before the tournament’s rescheduled start.
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