Two South African referees have been selected by CAF to be part of the match officials set to officiate the upcoming 2025 AFCON tournament.
This continental compensation is due to be staged in Morocco from 21 December 2025 until 18 January 2026.
A total of 73 seasoned match officials have been selected for the much-awaited AFCON tournament. This includes 28 referees, 31 assistant referees, and 14 VAR officials.
All designated match officials are set to arrive in Morocco on 15 December 2025 for an extensive training course prior to the tournament.
Bafana Bafana will also be part of the continental tournament. South Africa is placed in Group B of the AFCON competition alongside Egypt, Zimbabwe, and Angola.
The two highly rated South African match officials selected are referee Abongile Tom and assistant referee Zakhele Siwela.
THE CAF OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON MATCH OFFICIALS SELECTION
“The Confédération Africaine de Football [CAF] has announced the list of Match Officials set to officiate the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON] Morocco 2025. It will take place from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026,” reads the CAF official statement.
“A total of 73 highly experienced officials comprising 28 referees, 31 assistant referees, and 14 VAR officials have been appointed for this edition of Africa’s biggest football competition.
“The carefully selected officials represent all regions of the continent. This consist of Africa’s most experienced referees. These referees have officiated across a number of major CAF competitions in recent years.
“All appointed match officials are expected to arrive in Morocco on 15 December 2025. They undergo an intensive preparatory course ahead of the competition.
“The programme, which will be led by CAF’s Referees Department. It will include physical, technical, and theoretical assessments designed to ensure optimum performance throughout the tournament.
“This careful selection of highly experienced match officials underscores CAF’s continued commitment to refereeing excellence, competition integrity and CAF’s ongoing enhancements of technical standards across African football.”
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