Caf increases Afcon prize money by 40%

The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has announced a big increase in the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) prize money.  

The news will be motivation for the 24 teams that will do battle for top honours in the Afcon tournament starting on January 13 in Ivory Coast.  

The tournament was scheduled to take place last year but was postponed to January due to summer weather concerns in the country.  

Caf said the prize money for the continental showpiece has received an increase of 40%.  

The champions of this year’s edition will receive $7m (R131.3m) while the runners up take home $4m (R75m).  

The nations that finish as semi-finalists will receive $2.5m (R47m) and all teams that will see their journey end in the quarterfinalist will collect $1.3m (R24.4m).  

Caf president Patrice Motsepe said the federation has made significant progress over the past two years in increasing the prize money for the Afcon and all its other major competitions.  

“I am confident a portion of the prize money will contribute to developing football and benefit all the football stakeholders, as well as assist our member associations with their administrations,” Motsepe said.  

Sadio Mane’s Senegal will go to the tournament as defending champions after they defeated Mohammed Sala’s Egypt in the final in 2022.  

The two nations, with teams such as Morocco, are among favourites to win the title in Ivory Coast.  

After their excellent run to the semifinals of the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar, Morocco will have many rooting for them to win the African tournament for the first time since 1976.  

The best they have done since was to finish as runners up in 2004, while they were knocked out of the quarterfinals in the previous edition.