Countdown to AFCON 2027: Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania Race Against Time to Finish Infrastructure

Nairobi, Kenya – With less than nine months until the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations kicks off, Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania are entering the most demanding phase of preparations: completing and testing the stadiums, training grounds, and supporting infrastructure needed to host the tournament.

The tournament, scheduled for June 19 to July 17, 2027, will be the first Africa Cup of Nations jointly hosted by three countries and the competition’s return to East Africa since Ethiopia staged the finals in 1976. A Confederation of African Football (CAF) delegation spent eight days inspecting facilities across the three host countries earlier this month, assessing stadiums, training grounds, hotels, airports, and other infrastructure. The delegation included officials responsible for competitions, safety and security, transport, media, television, and logistics.

Kenya: Talanta takes centre stage

In Kenya, the biggest project is the newly built Talanta Sports International Stadium in Nairobi. The 60,000-capacity stadium is intended to be the country’s flagship AFCON venue and was inspected by CAF earlier this month. During a subsequent visit, CAF President Patrice Motsepe said he was impressed by the progress at Talanta. He also visited Kasarani Stadium, where work remains to be completed.

But Kenya’s preparations extend well beyond its new flagship stadium. CAF’s inspection also covered training venues, hotels, airport infrastructure, and other sites supporting the Nairobi tournament operation. Nicholus Musonye, chairman of Kenya’s AFCON 2027 Local Organising Committee, told Al Jazeera that the country was addressing the outstanding requirements.

“I want to assure Africa, and I want to assure the world, that Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, we are ready to host AFCON,” Musonye said. He added that work on Kasarani’s pitch should be completed by the end of October, with the venue planned to be ready for handover in December.

However, concerns remain regarding some supporting facilities. Kelvin Kimaru, a Kenyan football fan, told Al Jazeera that training grounds remained a concern. “We are not yet ready because the training grounds for the coming teams are not yet ready,” Kimaru said. Moses Kamalik, an executive member of the Boxing Federation of Kenya, noted that other venues also needed work, including Nyayo Stadium and Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Eldoret.

Tanzania: the race extends beyond stadiums

Tanzania is also entering the final stretch, with preparations covering stadiums, training grounds, and the infrastructure connecting them. Neema Msitha, chief executive of the country’s AFCON 2027 Local Organising Committee, told Al Jazeera that the country’s stadiums were more than 80 percent complete on average and expected to be ready for handover to CAF in January. Training facilities are being developed alongside the main venues, with five facilities being prepared in each host location, reaching about 75 percent completion.

The Tanzanian government has applied pressure to accelerate the work. In August, Prime Minister Mwigulu Nchemba ordered work on AFCON training grounds to speed up after inspecting the Farasi and Leaders Club training grounds in Dar-es-Salaam. Road infrastructure is also part of the preparations, with Works Minister Abdallah Ulega ordering contractors in June to operate around the clock on roads linked to the tournament in Arusha.

Msitha also pointed to regional airlines, Air Tanzania, and ferry services between Dar-es-Salaam and Zanzibar as part of the transport arrangements. CAF’s September inspection included Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar-es-Salaam and other key facilities in Tanzania.

Uganda faces its own deadlines

Uganda is working towards the same year-end push. Patrick Ogwel, a CAF infrastructure monitoring officer, told Al Jazeera that infrastructure development was expected to be ready by December 31. Hoima City Stadium has been completed and commissioned, while Akii-Bua Olympic Stadium in Lira is due to be completed and commissioned by December.

Uganda’s Local Organising Committee has identified Akii-Bua, Hoima City Stadium, and Mandela National Stadium as its three main venues, expecting 10 of the country’s 12 training facilities to be ready by the year's end. Despite this progress, Uganda’s State Minister for Sports Peter Ogwang directed the Uganda People’s Defence Forces on September 24 to accelerate work on several AFCON training facilities due to pace concerns at sites like Pece Stadium in Gulu, Lira, and Gulu University.

From construction to tournament readiness

The coming months will test whether the three hosts can turn construction progress into a functioning tournament operation handling broadcasting, media, security, transport, hospitality, and match operations. Having gained experience from jointly hosting the 2024 African Nations Championship and participating in an observer mission at the recent AFCON in Morocco, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda now face a larger undertaking with 24 national teams competing across three nations.

For supporters in East Africa, the tournament represents a major milestone. Gilbert Okeya, a Kenyan football fan and Football Kenya Federation referee, told Al Jazeera: “We are happy because we are going to host, and we are going to have an opportunity to have live matches for AFCON in our country.”