The joint bid by Nigeria and its neighboring Republic of Benin has emerged as a strong contender in the race to host the 36th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations in 2027. The Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football is scheduled to conduct the voting process for the host nations of both 2025 and 2027 during a meeting set to take place in Cairo on Wednesday. The venue for this meeting will be the Cairo Marriott Hotel, situated in the Zamalek district of downtown Cairo. While Morocco appears to have a secure hold on hosting the 2025 finals, the collaborative bid by Nigeria and the Republic of Benin is competing against Senegal, Egypt, Botswana, and a tripartite proposal from Uganda/Kenya/Tanzania for the 2027 event.

Algeria was initially a strong contender for the 2027 event, but the North African country withdrew from the race on Tuesday morning.

Guinea had originally been selected to host the 2025 finals, coinciding with Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire receiving the mandates for the 2021 and 2023 editions, respectively. However, Guinea faced significant challenges in preparing for the event, with issues related to infrastructure and facilities left unaddressed. The country’s situation was further complicated by a change in government, leading CAF to revoke Guinea’s hosting rights.

Nigeria has proposed several stadiums, including the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja, the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt, the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo, the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos, the Ahmadu Bello Stadium in Kaduna, the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, and the Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano. In the Republic of Benin, the Stade Mathieu Kerekou in Cotonou and the Stade Charles de Gaulle in Porto Novo have been listed as potential venues.