Nigeria, others handed November deadline by CAF to bid for AFCON 2025 hosting rights

All countries interested in hosting the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), would have to declare their interests on or before November 11, according to the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

The 2025 showpiece is scheduled to be the 35th edition of Africa's biennial international men's football championship and is expected to be played between June and July 2025.

In September 2022, CAF formally announced that the original host Guinea had been stripped it had been affirmed the nation wasn't adequately prepared to host the tournament.

African football's governing body has stated that any country that wishes to replace Guinea must provide their finalised proposals, supporting paperwork, suggested host cities, and government guarantees by December 16.

This comes after formerly announcing their interests on November 11.

CAF's inspection teams will tour the bidding countries from January 5 to 25 next year, hoping to find a suitable replacement for Guinea which had its rights withdrawn following concerns over infrastructure and facilities.

CAF's 24-member executive committee will after the inspections, review results before selecting one or more co-hosting nations for the 2025 finals. A decision will be made on February 10th.

Former Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president Amaju Pinnick had previously suggested that the country could step in and solve the Guinea problem by co-hosting with neighbours Benin Republic. However, it has been relatively quiet since Ibrahim Gusau replaced Pinnick as the country's football boss in late September.

The Royal Moroccan Football Federation are also expected to be a strong contender to bid for the men's tournament after they hosted the women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) finals in July this year.

Although the public interest largely tilts in favour of Senegal hosting the competition, potential bids from Algeria, South Africa, and Senegal have only been speculative.

According to a senior CAF official via BBC Africa, the organisation doesn't want to embarrass itself by giving the event to nations who are "unable to raise good infrastructure and hospitality to showcase to the rest of the world."

The 2021 Nations Cup was held in Cameroon earlier this year, with the 2023 finals, scheduled to take place in early 2024, in Ivory Coast.