President Bola Tinubu has approved Nigeria’s bid to host the 2026 CAF Awards and the 48th CAF Ordinary General Assembly, according to the Nigeria Football Federation.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Nigeria Football Federation said the approval followed a meeting between Tinubu and Patrice Motsepe during the ongoing Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.
Among those present at the meeting were Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; NFF President Ibrahim Gusau; former NFF President Amaju Pinnick; and CAF Acting General Secretary Samson Adamu.
“The President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, has approved Nigeria’s proposed hosting of the 48th Ordinary General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football, as well as this year’s CAF Awards Ceremony,” the statement read.
The NFF added that the 48th CAF Ordinary General Assembly would take place in October this year, bringing together football administrators from across Africa.
The assembly traditionally features presidents of CAF’s 54 member associations, representatives of the six zonal unions, and senior football officials from across the continent.
The CAF Awards remains African football’s biggest recognition event, honouring the continent’s leading players, coaches and teams.
The most recent ceremony took place in Rabat on November 19, 2025, with Morocco dominating several categories.
Achraf Hakimi won the African Men’s Player of the Year award after helping Paris Saint-Germain secure the UEFA Champions League and Ligue 1 titles. He succeeded Ademola Lookman and finished ahead of Mohamed Salah and Victor Osimhen.
Morocco also claimed several other honours, including Goalkeeper of the Year for Yassine Bounou, Young Player of the Year for Othmane Maamma, and Women’s Player of the Year for Ghizlane Chebbak.
Nigeria maintained a strong showing in the women’s categories, with Chiamaka Nnadozie retaining the Goalkeeper of the Year award, while the Nigeria women’s national football team won National Team of the Year.
Nigeria has hosted the CAF Awards four times previously, with Lagos staging the most recent edition in January 2015.