The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced that the 2026 edition of the CAF African Schools Football Championship Continental Finals will be hosted in Harare, Zimbabwe, from 2–10 April 2026.
The CAF African Schools Football Championship, now on its fourth year, was initiated by CAF President, Dr Patrice Motsepe, in 2021 in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. The kick-off event was held in Mozambique, Maputo a few months later.
“Now on its fourth edition, more than two million boys and girls have participated in the CAF African Schools Football Championship Programmes,” says CAF.
“Three (3) Million Boys and Girls have Participated since 2022 – making it the biggest Schools Football Competition globally
A total of 82 477 Schools accross Africa have participated in the Programme.”
The winners in both the Boys’ and Girls’ categories will receive USD 300 000 (R5 million).
The Runners-up are awarded USD 200 000 (R3.3 million) and third-place finishers receive USD 150,000 (R2.5 million).
These funds are ring-fenced for infrastructural development projects at the respective schools such as sports facilities, classrooms, libraries and other critical educational amenities.
“The Motsepe Foundation has invested USD 10 Million (R166 million) to contribute towards Prize Money and the previous Hosts of the Finals include South Africa (2023) Tanzania (2024) and Ghana (2025).
“To date, in excess of USD 2 600 000 (R43 million) has been contributed towards refurbishments of educational and sporting facilities across various African schools. The CAF African Schools Football Championship has established itself as Africa’s flagship schools football programme, combining football with education, social development and capacity building,” added CAF.
“Following the successful completion of the Zonal Qualifiers, 16 teams comprising of the Zonal champions, the host nation, as well as a historic invitation to teams from CAF’s sister Confederations – will compete in a tournament that remains proudly African, while strategically exposing young African talent to global football.”
CAF AFRICAN SCHOOLS CHAMPIONSHIP CONTINENTAL FINALS PARTICIPATING TEAMS:
GIRLS:
Zimbabwe (Hosts), Ghana (Champions), Burkina Faso, Morocco, Guinea, Tanzania, Zambia, DR Congo
BOYS:
Zimbabwe (Hosts), Tanzania (Champions), Benin, Morocco, Senegal, Uganda, Zambia, DR Congo
CAF will soon confirm details of the invitational teams from other Confederations.
CAF General Secretary, Mr Veron Mosengo-Omba said: “The CAF African Schools Football Championship programme is a strategic investment in the future of African football. Under the leadership of CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe, this programme continues to combine sporting excellence with education and capacity building”, said the CAF GS.
“As we prepare for the Continental Finals in Zimbabwe, including the historic participation of teams from sister Confederations, we reaffirm CAF’s commitment to developing young talent, strengthening institutions and positioning African football competitively on the global stage”, he concluded.
Running parallel to the on-field competition will be a series of capacity-building programmes by seasoned industry experts overseen by CAF.
These include the Young Referees Workshop, Young Reporter Workshop, Young Medical Officers Workshop, Coaching Workshops and Safeguarding Workshops.
