The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has announced Ghana as the host country for the 2027 U-20 Boys Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

This was confirmed by the President of the football governing body, Kurt Okraku, yesterday, Sunday, April 26, in a Facebook post.

The post read, “ 2027 U-20 boys AFCON to be hosted by Ghana”.

Ghana hosting the tournament again next year will mark the second time it has hosted since it last did in 1999, when it was known as the African Youth Championship, two decades after the tournament’s inception in 1979.

On that occasion, the Black Satellites reached the final but finished as runners-up to Nigeria.

Since then, Ghana has remained a strong force in the competition, most recently winning its fourth title in 2021. However, the country has not had the opportunity to host the tournament again until now.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated development, the recent AFCON competition on the senior team level was plagued with several controversies for which the President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, went to Senegal to meet the country’s president and football authorities over the disputed AFCON title.

The 2025 AFCON final was played on 18 January 2026 at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco, between Senegal and Morocco, where the former won by a goal.

The game, which was plagued by several incidents, including disputed refereeing decisions, VAR controversies and crowd disturbances, was later appealed by Morocco. The North Africans won the case after CAF’s Appeals Committee controversially overturned the result, awarding Morocco a 3–0 victory and the title.

The move was met with widespread disapproval and disappointment, with many slamming CAF’s credibility and calling it a“disgrace for Africa.” The Senegalese authorities openly defied the ruling by displaying the trophy in Paris.

Following this, the CAF President Patrice Motsepe has arrived in Senegal in an attempt to quell tensions and clear any misconceptions of bias after the AFCON 2025 title strip.

He is expected to meet the Senegalese Head of State, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, and the Fédération Sénégalaise de Football, Mr Abdoulaye Fall, on the working visit.

Meanwhile, CAF’s statement, which announced the new AFCON title winners, indicated that the reversal was on procedural grounds, with the governing body noting that Morocco’s right to be heard had not been respected during the initial proceedings.

Senegal has since filed an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sports over the decision.

What exactly happened at the AFCON final, detailed chronologically

The final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) was nothing short of controversial, chaotic and tense; however, the side widely alleged to be at the centre of it all was Senegal.

This followed Morocco being awarded a penalty after their player, Ayoub El Kaabi, tumbled in the box following contact with Senegal defender Abdou Diallo. The referee initially waved play on, but later intervened after a VAR review.

Following the check, Morocco were awarded a penalty, which clearly upset Senegal’s players, who believed the contact was minimal and that El Kaabi had gone down too easily.

Consequently, they staged a walk-off in protest on the pitch. During this time, some Senegalese supporters attempted to storm the pitch, with some captured throwing objects onto the field, including a chair.