A historic step for African football: CAF introduces VAR in the group stage of international tournaments

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has taken a major step forward in the development of officiating across the continent. Journalist Micky Jnr reports that referee appointments for the opening rounds of the 2026/27 CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup group stages have been officially announced. For the first time in the history of both competitions, the lists also include VAR officials.

This means video assistant referees will be in use from the group stage of Africa’s two premier club competitions. CAF President Patrice Motsepe had previously promised to introduce VAR at this stage of the tournaments, and the organisation has now begun putting that plan into action.

The decision could mark an important step towards improving the standard of officiating and reducing the number of contentious incidents in African club football. Introducing video assistance at such an early stage of the competitions also underlines CAF’s ambition to bring its tournaments in line with modern international standards.

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For now, the appointments cover only the opening matchday of the group stage, but the inclusion of VAR officials in the lists is already being hailed as a significant achievement for African football.