A new era in African club football began on Thursday as the Confederation of African Football (CAF), alongside long-standing sponsor TotalEnergies, unveiled a redesigned trophy for the continent’s flagship club competition — the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League.
The unveiling took place at TotalEnergies’ headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the presence of African football royalty. Among those in attendance were former Bafana Bafana stars Lucas Radebe, Teko Modise and Siphiwe Tshabalala, lending a sense of history and pride to the occasion.
The new trophy, with its sleek silver and gold lines, is a bold visual statement — a fusion of modern design and African heritage. It symbolises both the fierce competition and the unity that have come to define Africa’s most prestigious club tournament. The silver-gold interplay represents not just triumph and ambition, but also the mutual respect between rivals on the pitch.
CAF General Secretary Véron Mosengo-Omba called the redesign a major milestone in the governing body’s efforts to rebrand and modernise African football.
“In line with the vision of the CAF President, Dr Patrice Motsepe, we are rebranding and repositioning African football with a special focus on interclub competitions,” he said. “This trophy reflects our goals and bold steps toward an exciting African club football environment. With this, we aim to elevate the stature of African competitions to global prominence.”
For TotalEnergies, the unveiling is about more than sport. “This goes beyond revealing a trophy. It’s about celebrating a powerful momentum that brings people together in Africa,” said Olagoke Aluko, Managing Director and CEO of TotalEnergies Marketing South Africa. “We take pride in what this trophy represents — diversity, unity and cohesion — and we are delighted the ceremony is taking place in South Africa, a country that has long embraced the unbreakable spirit of African football.”
The timing of the reveal is deliberate. With the 2024/25 TotalEnergies CAF Champions League final just days away, anticipation is at fever pitch. South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns host Egypt’s Pyramids FC in the first leg on Saturday in Pretoria, before the decider in Cairo on 1 June.
Whoever lifts the new trophy will not just be champions of Africa — they’ll be the first to etch their name onto a symbol of a new chapter in African football history.
