The CAF African Nations Championship (CHAN) celebrates its eighth edition this year, beginning on 2 August. A celebration of the continent’s footballing talent, the tournament has grown from a mere idea to promote the growth of the sport and local leagues and is now a regular feature on the CAF calendar.
The concept of the tournament came to life during a CAF Executive Committee meeting in September 2007. The main objectives were to create a tournament to give homegrown players the opportunity to represent their nations as well as promote and grow local leagues on the continent. The tournament was approved four months later, with Côte d’Ivoire being confirmed as the host nation for the inaugural edition.
The first edition comprised eight countries, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) claiming the first title.
After the first tournament, interest in the competition grew. The second edition was hosted by Sudan and featured 16 teams, double the amount of the first, with Tunisia claiming the title.
The next four CHAN tournaments from 2014-2020 also featured 16 teams before the 2022 edition in Algeria added another to the mix.
In 2014, Libya was crowned champions and DR Congo claimed their second title in 2016. Morocco joined DR Congo as the only nations to win the tournament twice as they claimed the title in 2018 on home soil and successfully defended it in Cameroon in 2020. Senegal joined the list of champions in the last edition in 2022.
This year’s CHAN tournament has expanded further, including 19 teams who have been split into three groups of five and one group of four. Despite the larger number of participants, the tournament will still move from the group stage into the quarterfinals. 2025 also marks the first time that that tournament has joint-hosts, with Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania having the honour of welcoming the continent.
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