Ethiopia has officially submitted its bid to host the 2028 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), seeking to bring the continent’s premier football tournament back home for the first time in more than five decades.
The Ethiopian Football Federation confirmed the bid on Monday in a post on X, declaring the country’s readiness to stage the competition.
“Ethiopia has formally submitted its bid to CAF to host AFCON 2028,” the federation said, describing the move as a reaffirmation of the country’s “full readiness to host Africa’s biggest footballing event.”
Ethiopia last hosted AFCON in 1976. If successful, the bid would see the tournament return to the country after 52 years.
With a population of approximately 130 million, Ethiopia is Africa’s second-most populous country. Its capital, Addis Ababa, hosts the headquarters of the African Union and is located at an elevation of around 2,300 metres, making it the continent’s highest capital city.
Despite its ambitions, however, Ethiopia’s bid faces several challenges, particularly around security.
Insurgencies remain active in Amhara and Oromia, two of the country’s most populous regions, while tensions involving the federal government and the northern Tigray region continue to raise concerns over the potential for renewed conflict.
Ethiopia’s recent footballing performance could also present an obstacle. The national team is currently ranked 143rd in the FIFA rankings and has not qualified for an AFCON tournament since 2022, when it was eliminated during the group stage.
Morocco most recently hosted the biennial tournament, while the 2027 edition is scheduled to take place across Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The 2028 tournament is also expected to mark a major change in AFCON’s scheduling. From that edition, the competition is set to move from a two-year cycle to a four-year cycle, bringing its schedule more closely in line with other major international football tournaments.
Meanwhile, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have reportedly shown interest in jointly hosting the 2032 edition. Their potential bid comes despite ongoing security concerns and deadly attacks by jihadist groups across the three countries.
