The Confederation of African Football has scrapped its long-standing cup-tied rule, allowing players to represent two different clubs in the same Champions League or Confederation Cup season.
The change was approved by the CAF Executive Committee on Friday and means players who feature for one club in the competition can now move during the season and represent another club in the same campaign.
Previously, a player who appeared for a club in either CAF interclub competition was ineligible to play for another team in the same competition after a transfer.
Under the new regulation, however, a player could feature for Enugu Rangers in the Champions League group stage before moving to Rivers United during the January transfer window and subsequently represent the Pride of Rivers in the knockout rounds.
The rule change provides greater flexibility for clubs and players during the season, particularly around the January transfer window.
Clubs now allowed 40-player registration
CAF has also increased the flexibility available to clubs in squad registration.
A club can now register a maximum of 40 players for a single CAF interclub campaign, while four players can be changed during the final registration period.
Those replacements are only permitted if the incoming players have not previously featured for the club in that campaign.
The changes form part of CAF’s regulations for the 2026/27 Champions League and Confederation Cup and follow similar eligibility reforms introduced by UEFA in its European club competitions.
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Under the new CAF regulations, once the league phase is completed, clubs can register up to three additional players for the knockout phase.
Those players can have already represented another club in the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League earlier in the same season.
The reform could therefore have a significant impact on the January transfer market, giving clubs competing in the latter stages of CAF competitions greater scope to strengthen their squads without being restricted by a player’s previous continental appearance.
Lagos to host CAF Awards
CAF also confirmed several other decisions following Friday’s Executive Committee meeting.
The 2026 CAF Awards will be held in Lagos, Nigeria, on December 7, while Nigeria will host CAF’s Ordinary General Assembly on November 21.
The continental finals of the CAF Women’s Champions League are scheduled for November 1 to 15, although CAF has yet to announce the host country.
Senegal, meanwhile, will stage the CAF Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations from November 28 to December 6.
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The abolition of the cup-tied rule nevertheless stands out as one of the most significant changes, potentially reshaping how African clubs approach recruitment and squad building during the 2026/27 interclub season.
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