FIFA has approved a one-week delay for clubs to release players for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, allowing stars such as Mohamed Salah, Bryan Mbeumo and Achraf Hakimi to remain with their clubs until December 15. The decision offers partial relief to European teams facing the prospect of losing several key players for up to five weeks during a congested fixture period.
The AFCON, featuring 24 nations, will take place in Morocco from December 21 to January 18. Clubs had feared an earlier release date would see players depart by December 8, potentially missing seven to eight league matches at a critical point in the season.
According to FIFA, the adjustment followed “fruitful consultations” with involved stakeholders and support from the Confederation of African Football. The governing body said participating national associations and clubs are encouraged to hold “good faith bilateral discussions” to agree on individual release arrangements.
The tournament is set to affect several Premier League clubs. Liverpool will lose Egypt captain Salah; Manchester City will release Omar Marmoush and Algeria’s Rayan Ait-Nouri; while Manchester United will be without Cameroon’s Mbeumo, Ivory Coast’s Amad Diallo and Morocco’s Noussair Mazraoui.
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Sunderland and Wolverhampton Wanderers face significant squad disruptions, with the potential loss of up to seven and five players respectively. However, Arsenal, Chelsea and Leeds are not expected to be affected.
In France, Paris Saint-Germain will be without Hakimi, the reigning African Footballer of the Year. Major European clubs including Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan and Juventus will not release any players for the tournament.
Bayern Munich’s Nicolas Jackson, on loan from Chelsea, will join Senegal but is unlikely to miss many club matches due to the Bundesliga’s winter break scheduled from December 22 to January 8.
Morocco, Egypt, Algeria and Senegal are among the favourites to win the continental championship.