In Africa and Europe, the major continental women competition for nations have been concluded, with both tournaments holding simultaneously and there have been a lot of talking points.
The recently concluded UEFA Women’s Euro (WEUROS) tournament delivered a festival of football filled with sold-out stadiums and advanced media coverage.
In contrast, Africa’s premier women’s football competition, the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), continues to battle issues that hinder its growth and global relevance.
With the allure of higher prize money, expanded global visibility, and a newly redesigned shiny trophy, the tournament was supposed to be a new start, sadly that is not the case.
The chasm between WEUROS and WAFCON is both deep and revealing. While Europe has made enormous strides in beautifying and he women’s game and making it attractive, Africa appears to be moving at a slower, uncertain pace.
This disparity is not rooted in the quality of talent as Africa boasts some of the world’s finest players. In fact, two (Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji) of the top five most expensive women’s player of all times are from Africa, further buttressing that Africa has got the big names.
Instead, the difference lies in the supporting structures: sponsorship, fan engagement, stadium attendance, media coverage, storytelling, and infrastructure.
While the world celebrates the achievements of WEUROS, it is imperative for the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to introspect and act.
How then and where should CAF improve upon to make the WAFCON attractbthe numbers in viewership, finances and engagement?
Sponsorship and Commercial Investment
One of the most obvious differences between WEUROS and WAFCON lies in sponsorship.
The European tournament attracted high-value corporate sponsors such as Visa, Heineken, and Adidas. These companies invested millions not only during the tournament but in the long-term growth of the women’s game.
According to UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, “The impact of WEURO 2025 extends far beyond the competition itself. With record prize money and unprecedented interest from sponsors, the tournament will bring more investment into the women’s game than ever before.”
WAFCON, on the other hand, continues to rely heavily on limited and often generalized sponsorships that also cover male tournaments. The women’s game receives little tailored commercial focus.
Week-after-week, we get update on the AFCON in December on new sponsors but sadly is not the case for the just concluded WAFCON.
CAF was only able to secure TotalEnergies, Orange, Danone, Visa, and AGL as sponsors as observed on CAF’s website.
The exact figures of this sponsorship worth remains unavailable to the general public This lack of dedicated investment creates a vicious cycle where limited funds affect tournament organization, media packaging, and player welfare.
The Way Forward: CAF must design specific commercial strategies for women’s football, separate from men’s competitions.
There is a massive untapped market across Africa in industries like telecommunications, banking, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs), and fintech that would benefit from brand association with a progressive and inclusive product.
According to the BBC, one executive from a multinational which recently partnered with CAF for AFCON said his company is “absolutely” interested in expanding its sponsorship to the women’s game.
Through this, CAF can create tiered sponsorship packages for WAFCON and introduce a centralized marketing agency to pitch the women’s game to the continent’s growing brands.
Stadium Attendance and Fan Engagement
WEUROS 2025 drew record crowds, filling massive stadiums from the group stages to the finals. Ticket sales were swift, fan parks were lively, and television stations recording huge numbers of viewers.
The UEFA official statistics revealed that 29 of 31 matches sold out with more attendance records broken at the just concluded WEUROS.
The UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 was the best-attended Women’s European Championship event. Over 650,000 tickets were officially sold. Before the final, UEFA wrote “a record 623,088 spectators have attended UEFA Women’s EURO 2025, surpassing previous total attendance record of 574,875 from UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 in England’.
By comparison, WAFCON still suffers from low in-stadium attendance, even in knockout stages. Many fans remain unable to afford travel to matches due to border restrictions.
Stadia not hosting home teams were sparsely filled. Many factors could be attributed as reasons, Africa having a lot of poor people, difficult travel restrictions and high cost of intercontinental travel within Africa discouraged overseas fans from attending, further dampening the atmosphere and limiting the event’s reach.
Another factor as observed even before the tournament by South Africa’s Coach, Desiree Ellis was poor scheduling as it clashed with the WEUROS.
In truth, the tournament’s overlap with the WEUROS limited international media attention and global coverage.
While matches involving hosts Morocco attracted full houses at the Olympic Stadium in Rabat, the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium—site of the 2022 final and home to a record-breaking crowd of 45,562 spectators, was unavailable due to ongoing renovations ahead of the men’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in December.
Outside Morocco’s fixtures, attendances were noticeably poor. Promotion of the tournament across host cities was minimal, with little to no visible signage or fan engagement beyond stadium zones. Moreover, the
The Way Forward: CAF must work with local organizing committees and national football federations to develop fan outreach campaigns to spur more who may not be football lovers to attend these tournaments.
Easy application for visas and reduced travel costs through CAF by partnering with airline companies is possible. Speaking with BBC Africa, CAF general secretary Veron Mosengo-Omba agreed on the stark difference and asked for more time to reach a filled stadium.
“We need time to progress but we are certain, with the potential that we have, we will reach the level of sister competitions. Europe, to reach this level, started about 25 or 30 years [ago]. Success is not built in one day. The potential is there, but give us the time to work hard.” He said.
Media Coverage and Broadcasting Quality
Media coverage of WEUROS 2025 was a masterclass in modern sports broadcasting. Fans were treated to multilingual commentary, sophisticated pre-match and post-match analysis, multiple camera angles, and easily accessible match statistics.
The tournament was watched in over 165 countries through official broadcast partners and digital platforms.
With over 65 UEFA broadcast partners around the world, the WEUROS reached a cumulative live audience of over 400 million and a cumulative all programme audience in excess of 500 million.
A global audience of over 45 million viewers was projected for the final. To improve broadcast quality, UEFA announced the introduction of an enhanced camera plan that has new angles and heightened on-screen drama. A record number of cameras have been used for a Women’s EURO – including 27 for the final in Basel.
Rabat’s Rob Steven observed a very vital point; “One potential source of income could be from improved broadcast deals and commercial contracts, even if viewers for the women’s game are lower than men’s matches.” He wrote.
To achieve this, CAF must reach become competitive when it comes to broadcast quality for the women’s game. WAFCON, however, continues to struggle with basic coverage.
Many group stage matches were not televised to the highest standards, and information such as match previews and real-time stats were hard to come by especially in the group stage of the competition.
Journalists covering the tournament often worked with minimal support due to lack of accessible tournament data.
The Way Forward: CAF needs a real-time dedicated digital platform for women’s football. This platform should provide live updates, player profiles, highlight reels, interviews, and starts in real-time.
Information is needed to promote the sport. Majority of the information for this piece was gotten from UEFA’s website, for CAF, same cannot be said.
CAF needs to provide information on what they are doing making it easy for journalists writing on their events to easily report.
Investment in a better broadcast deal with continental networks and online streaming platforms is also essential. Training programs for African sports journalists can further improve reportage around the women’s game.
Infrastructure and Consistency
Europe’s women’s tournaments are hosted in top-tier stadiums with modern facilities and consistent timelines. In Africa the case is different, WAFCON faces unpredictable scheduling, late host announcements, and venues that sometimes fail to meet international standards.
This lack of professionalism discourages sponsors and undermines the tournament’s reputation. For example, WAFCON held in July ought to have been held in 2024 but CAF had to move the date to accommodate the Summer Olympics last year.
The Way Forward
CAF must enforce higher infrastructure standards and plan tournaments years in advance. Hosting rights should be tied to specific infrastructure benchmarks.
CAF also, must support national federations in upgrading facilities and training centers specifically for women’s teams.
Government and Federation Support
Government support for WEUROS was visible at every level, from tourism boards promoting host cities to local councils facilitating logistics and fan parks.
Ministries of sport, culture, and education played active roles in ensuring the success of the tournament. Even Switzerland official government website admitted that UEFA have been helpful.
In Africa, government support for women’s football is inconsistent and often seen as a secondary agenda. This affects everything from budget allocations to stadium access and player welfare.
The Way Forward: CAF must lobby for continental and national policy changes that prioritize women’s sports. Inclusion in national sports budgets, tax incentives for sponsors, and support for women’s football academies can make a huge difference.
WAFCON undoubtedly has the potential to become one of the most followed football tournaments in the world. Africa is not short of talent, passion, or audience.
What seems to be lacking is the structure to harness these elements into a marketable, sustainable, and globally respected product.
The lessons from WEUROS are not just aspirational; they are actionable. From sponsorship to media coverage, from fan engagement to filling stadiums, CAF must treat women’s football not as a development program but as a core product of African football.
