The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially unveiled eAFCON, a digital version of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, marking the organisation’s formal entry into the global eSports and eGaming space.
CAF said the initiative represents a major pillar of its evolving commercial strategy and a deliberate move aimed at engaging younger audiences while expanding and diversifying revenue streams beyond traditional football competitions.
In a statement released on Friday, said the project would, for the first time, take its flagship national team competition into competitive gaming.
“A key new pillar of CAF’s commercial strategy has been the introduction of eAFCON. For the first time in CAF history, the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations has entered the eGaming space through a partnership with , through its game eFootball,” the statement read.
According to CAF, eAFCON is being developed as part of broader efforts to strengthen its digital footprint and align African football with the fast-growing global eSports ecosystem. The body described the initiative as a significant step that places African football within a rapidly expanding digital sports culture.
CAF added that the digital assets generated through eAFCON will be fully integrated into its commercial portfolio. These assets, the organisation said, are expected to create new commercial opportunities while increasing global engagement with African football content.
The statement noted that the assets from eAFCON will “form part of CAF’s commercial assets inventory” starting from the next TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations cycle, signalling that the digital competition will be treated as a long-term commercial property.
The launch of eAFCON comes on the back of strong recent commercial performances by CAF. The body said the recorded over a 90 per cent increase in revenues.
CAF attributed this growth to expanded sponsorships, wider media rights distribution and entry into new global markets, particularly in the Far East, including China and Japan, alongside stronger consolidation in traditional markets.
The organisation also credited the revenue surge to the retention of long-term partners such as TotalEnergies, Orange, Lonaci, 1xBet, Visa, Tecno and Puma, as well as the attraction of new global commercial brands.
