Will the Africa Cup disrupt the calendar?

After discussions about the Africa Cup

New scheduling chaos because of this competition?

Bayer Leverkusen released four players for the Africa Cup and lost 4-1 in the Bundesliga against Stuttgart in the first game of 2026 – without these professionals.

Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza, Christian Kofane and Eliesse Ben Seghir. These are the names of the professionals that Leverkusen is currently missing because of the Africa Cup. The first three in particular regularly left their mark on the Werkself in the first half of the season. As an organizer in defense, Tapsoba is actually indispensable on regular match days.

But they were all missing at the start of the year in the 4-1 defeat against Stuttgart, which raises the question to what extent are Leverkusen at a competitive disadvantage as a result of the secondments? Or is it just poorly planned? After all, the retirement phase has been known for a long time and the squad planning in the summer could have been geared towards it.

But right in the middle of these thoughts, Patrice Mosepe’s announcement burst shortly before Christmas. Mosepe is president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). He announced in Morocco’s capital Rabat shortly before the start of the current tournament that the Africa Cup would take place every four years from 2028, and thus in the rhythm of the European Championships and the Copa América.

What is still unclear is the exact timing of the Africa Cup. It was originally planned to take place in June and July since 2019. Because of the corona pandemic and weather reasons, this was not maintained and the event always returned to the original time in the European winter.

However, it was a second announcement that left confusion. Mosepe loudly announced that the Nations League would also be introduced on the African continent from 2029. “Every year we will hold a competition with 54 African nations where the best players come here to play.” A world-class competition is held every year.