The Confederation of African Football has said that the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 has become the most successful commercial venture in the history of African football, recording more than a 90 per cent increase in revenues.

In a statement obtained from its website on Thursday, CAF said the achievement was driven by expanded sponsorship deals, broader media rights distribution, and entry into new markets, particularly in Asia.

The body stated, “The TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 is now undoubtedly the most successful commercial story in the history of African football as the commercial success of the competition has led to over 90% increase in the CAF revenues for the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2025.”

The continental body attributed the surge to expanded partnerships, wider media rights distribution, and penetration into new territories.

It explained that the growth was “driven by a significant increase in the commercial partners of CAF, an increase in media rights distribution, and also CAF venturing into new markets, most notably the Far East, China, Japan, while also consolidating traditional markets.”

Providing details of the sponsorship trajectory, CAF noted, “The number of commercial partners increased from nine during the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon 2021 to 17 during the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d’Ivoire 2023.”

It added that, “For the 2025 edition in Morocco, CAF has continued to attract more partners and now has 23 sponsors.”

CAF also stressed that the expansion reflected “both the attraction of new global brands and the retention of existing partners, for whom the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON has been an excellent return on investment.”

The football governing body said the commercial boom followed a deliberate data-driven strategy implemented after the 2023 finals in Côte d’Ivoire.

According to the statement, “The TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations has recorded unprecedented commercial growth between 2021 and 2025, driven by a deliberate, data-led strategy that has repositioned the competition as a truly global football property.”

CAF said audience research conducted after the last edition revealed untapped interest across several regions, adding that the findings “provided a clear roadmap for future commercial engagement.”

It stated that the insights informed the current cycle with “targeted focus placed on regions demonstrating high engagement levels, including China, Japan, Brazil, and key European markets.”

On its widening global footprint, CAF disclosed that its sponsor base now covered multiple continents, with partners from the United States, China, Germany, Japan, Morocco, Côte d’Ivoire, the United Kingdom, and Turkey, while the European Union had also joined as a sponsor.

The body listed long-standing collaborators such as TotalEnergies, Orange, Lonaci, 1xBet, Visa, Tecno, and Puma as continuing their association, with AGL, Danone, and Unilever renewing their commitments.

The Federal Government has commended the Super Eagles for their performance at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, assuring the team that Nigerians remain proud of them despite their semi-final exit from the tournament.

In a statement released on Thursday by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, the government praised the players for representing the country with pride, dignity and resilience throughout the competition.

“Nigeria remains proud of you,” Idris said, noting that the Super Eagles displayed character, teamwork and commitment even in defeat.

He said the players’ conduct and fighting spirit embodied the values associated with the national colours, stressing that the team’s effort mattered as much as the final result.

“Even in defeat, you showed character, teamwork and resilience, and those qualities matter deeply to the nation you represent,” the minister said.

According to Idris, the Super Eagles reminded Nigerians that playing for the country goes beyond winning matches, describing the green and white jersey as a symbol of courage, unity and perseverance.

“You reminded us that wearing the green and white is about courage, unity, and never giving up. Football has its highs and lows, but your effort and commitment throughout this tournament have earned the respect and gratitude of Nigerians at home and abroad,” he said.

The minister urged the team to remain united, learn from the experience and return stronger, assuring them of the nation’s continued support.

“Hold your heads high, stay united and return stronger. Nigeria is grateful for the joy and hope you gave us during this competition, and the nation stands with you, always,” Idris added.

The Super Eagles were knocked out of the tournament on Wednesday after losing 4–2 in a penalty shootout to host nation Morocco, following a goalless draw after extra time at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium.

The semi-final was keenly contested, with Morocco enjoying more of the attacking initiative, registering 16 shots to Nigeria’s two.

Both sides, however, were kept in the game by impressive goalkeeping displays from Nigeria’s Stanley Nwabali and Morocco’s Yassine Bounou.

Nigeria’s key attackers, Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman, found it difficult to break through the hosts’ defence, as Morocco secured a place in the final via penalties.

Super Eagles captain, Wilfred Ndidi, said he has committed to his teammates and officials that he would settle their unpaid match bonuses at the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco if the Federal Government fails to pay before Saturday, when they will face Algeria in the quarter-finals, PorscheClassy News reports.

Ndidi was quoted by BBC journalist Oluwashina Okeleji on Thursday after the Federal Government, through the Office of the Minister of State for Finance, Doris Uzoka-Anite, had promised to fast-track the payments between Thursday and Friday.

“I’ve been pushing the team to train and play the game vs Algeria. I’ve been doing this since the second game. I’ve now made a commitment to the staff and players that I’ll personally pay the bonuses if the authorities fail to before Saturday,” Ndidi was quoted by Okeleji in an X post.

“I don’t want these unpaid bonuses to affect our preparations. I told players and coaching staff that I’d personally make the payments if they don’t get it,” he added.

The Super Eagles’ camp was rocked by reports of alleged plans by players and officials to boycott travel to Marrakech and training on Thursday over unpaid bonuses for their three group stage fixtures and the round of 16.

In response to the report, Uzoka-Anite provided an update on the administrative progress regarding the match bonuses on Thursday, noting that group stage funds had been released and had cleared the necessary regulatory stages, while subsequent payments would no longer be affected by such delays.

“The Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria have successfully streamlined the foreign exchange processing to ensure our players are rewarded without further delay,” the minister wrote on X.

“Going forward, the process will be fully streamlined to ensure faster, more predictable disbursements aligned with international best practice. All group stage bonuses were fully released and have now cleared the necessary regulatory stages.”

She further explained the new process for subsequent payments, which will ease the release of funds in the players’ preferred currency.

“We have implemented a fast-track conversion process to move funds into foreign currency, honouring the players’ preferences. The final transfers to domiciliary accounts are currently in flight. Players can expect these funds to reflect starting today (Thursday) or tomorrow (Friday).”

Ndidi and his teammates arrived in Marrakech on Thursday and held another training session ahead of Saturday’s clash against Algeria.

Nigeria are chasing a fourth AFCON title in the North African country after previous triumphs in 1980, 1994, and 2013.