For twelve years, the CAF Awards have bypassed Lagos. On Wednesday, December 2, the city gets them back.
African football’s most glamorous evening will unfold at the National Theatre — formally the Professor Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Arts — where the continent’s finest players, coaches, clubs and national teams will gather under one roof.
The ceremony begins at 7pm Nigerian time, which is 8pm in Cairo and 6pm GMT.
A Homecoming Twelve Years in the Making
Lagos last hosted these awards in 2014. Since then, the ceremony has travelled, and the city has waited.
This year’s return is not simply a change of venue. CAF has promised an edition that fuses football with Nigerian culture, with music and entertainment threaded through the evening — a celebration designed to look and sound like the country hosting it.
Eighteen Prizes, Two Headline Races
When the envelopes are opened, 18 categories will be decided.
Two will command the most attention: the CAF Men’s Player of the Year and the Women’s Player of the Year. Around them, honours will go to the outstanding coaches, goalkeepers, young players, clubs and national teams whose seasons defined African football.
The Votes That Decide It
Meanwhile, the winners are not chosen in a boardroom. Voting opened on November 5 and closes on November 20, drawing on CAF member associations, clubs, eligible coaches and national team captains.
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Furthermore, CAF says the process is structured to ensure broad representation across the continent while keeping it fair and transparent — and independent monitors are watching, tasked with protecting the credibility of the final results.
The Night Ahead
However, on December 2, the lights will go down at the National Theatre, the music will start, and African football will crown its best.
For the players, it is the culmination of a season. For Lagos, it is a homecoming. And for CAF, it is a chance to show that the continent’s biggest night can still feel like a celebration rather than a formality.