The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially announced the dates for the historic 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which will be co-hosted in East Africa by Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. Scheduled to take place from June 19 to July 18, this 36th edition will be the first time three East African nations jointly host the continent's premier football tournament. It also marks the first time in five decades that AFCON will be organized in the CECAFA region, following Ethiopia's hosting in 1976. The 2027 edition coincides with the Africa Cup of Nations' 70th anniversary and will be the last to be held in odd-numbered years, as CAF declared in December 2025 that the tournament would become quadrennial from 2028 onwards.

Preparations are well underway in the host nations. The Uganda Local Organising Committee (LOC) confirmed the approved dates, with Dennis K. Mugimba, chair of the AFCON local communications and signage committee, specifying that Uganda will utilize two primary competition stadia: Mandela National Stadium (Namboole) in Kira Municipality, Wakiso District, and Hoima City Stadium in Hoima City. Kenya has proposed Nairobi, Eldoret, and Kakamega as its host cities, while Tanzania is expected to host matches in Dar es Salaam, Arusha, Dodoma, and Zanzibar.

A crucial step in the preparations saw the Kenyan government successfully meet its key CAF deadline day requirements. Kenya paid the Ksh3.9 billion ($30 million) hosting fee, a week after facing warnings that rights could be lost, especially since partners Tanzania and Uganda had already fulfilled their financial obligations. Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Sports, Salim Mvurya, expressed satisfaction, stating, "I am pleased to announce the Government of Kenya has fully met its financial and institutional obligations to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as we steadily advance towards co-hosting the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)." Additionally, Kenya reconstituted its Local Organising Committee to ensure institutional capacity aligns with the tournament's scale and urgency.

To enhance the visitor experience, the Ugandan government has committed to waiving visa fees for all visitors to Uganda for a period of at least three months, encompassing one month prior to kick-off and one month after the final match of the 2027 AFCON. The co-hosting nations have prior experience with major regional tournaments, having also co-hosted the 2024 African Nations Championship (CHAN) in February 2025, where Morocco claimed its third CHAN title. Meanwhile, qualifying matches for the 2027 AFCON have commenced, with Burundi, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Eritrea already securing their places in the next round of qualifiers during the March FIFA international break.