Divock Origi is a free agent after leaving AC Milan. Liverpool fans hope for a sensational return amid attack injuries and January transfer buzz.

Divock Origi Becomes Free Agent, Liverpool Fans Hope for Return

Former Liverpool striker Divock Origi is officially a free agent after AC Milan confirmed a mutual termination of his contract, sparking immediate speculation about a potential return to Anfield. The Belgian, who joined Liverpool from Lille in 2014, has been a cult hero for Reds fans, despite not always being a regular starter.

Origi initially spent the 2014/15 season on loan at Lille before linking up with Liverpool the following summer. However, his progress was disrupted by a knee injury in 2016, requiring surgery and slowing his adaptation under Jürgen Klopp. He spent the 2017/18 season on loan at Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga before returning to Liverpool, where he began making a significant impact.

Liverpool Career and Iconic Moments

Though Origi rarely started matches, he appeared in over 170 games for Liverpool, scoring 41 goals and registering 17 assists across competitions. His record includes some of the most memorable moments in Liverpool history.

The standout moment came in the 2019 UEFA Champions League final against Tottenham Hotspur, where Origi scored the second goal after coming off the bench, securing Liverpool’s sixth European crown. Earlier in the semi-final against Barcelona, he scored twice, including the decisive goal in the 4-0 Anfield leg, completing one of football’s most remarkable comebacks.

AC Milan Spell and Free Agency

In the summer of 2022, Origi left Liverpool for AC Milan following their Serie A triumph. Despite high expectations, he struggled to make a consistent impact, scoring only two goals in over 30 appearances. Injuries and difficulties adjusting to Italian football limited his contributions. A loan spell at Nottingham Forest in the 2023/24 season offered little reprieve.

Milan confirmed the termination of his contract in a brief statement:

“AC Milan announces that it has mutually agreed to terminate the contract of forward Divock Origi. The Club wishes the player all the best for the future.”

This announcement opens the door for Origi to explore new opportunities, and Liverpool could emerge as a natural destination, particularly following the long-term injury to striker Alexander Isak, which leaves the Reds short in attack.

International Career: Belgium Over Kenya

Off the pitch, Origi’s international choice has been a topic of discussion in Kenya. The son of former Harambee Stars striker Mike Okoth Origi, Divock was eligible to represent Kenya but opted for Belgium.

Speaking on Sporty FM, Okoth explained that the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) never formally approached the family. “FKF never even knew that Divock was playing football. There is no way they could approach me and say they wanted Divock to play for Kenya,” Okoth said.

Origi rose through Belgium’s youth teams and made his senior debut in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. He scored against Russia, becoming the first player of Kenyan origin to score at a World Cup and Belgium’s youngest World Cup goalscorer at 19 years, two months, and four days. Despite later missing the Russia and Qatar tournaments, Origi has proudly maintained his Kenyan heritage and citizenship.

Career Achievements

• UEFA Champions League winner with Liverpool
• English Premier League winner with Liverpool
• Belgian Sportsman of the Year Young Talent (2014)
• Over 170 appearances and 41 goals for Liverpool
• First Kenyan-origin player to score at a FIFA World Cup

Next Steps and Transfer Speculation

With the January transfer window approaching, clubs across Europe may express interest in Origi’s services. Liverpool fans, still mourning the loss of Isak for several months, could see the Belgian forward as a short-term but impactful solution.

Origi, now 29, remains a versatile forward capable of changing games with crucial goals, particularly as a super-sub—a role he excelled in throughout his Liverpool career.

CAF to move Africa Cup of Nations to quadrennial format after 2027, keeping Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda as co-hosts.

Africa Cup of Nations to Move to Quadrennial Schedule

Rabat, Morocco — The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) will switch from a biennial to a quadrennial tournament, Reuters reported on December 20, 2025.

The decision came during a CAF executive committee meeting in Morocco. Officials said the change will better align Africa’s top football competition with global calendars. They also cited the need to reduce player fatigue and increase the tournament’s prestige.

CAF confirmed that the change will not affect the 2027 AFCON. Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda are set to co-host the tournament as planned. Preparations in all three countries are already underway.

“Shifting to a four-year cycle gives national teams more time to prepare. It also helps domestic leagues manage schedules and aligns African football with the international game,” said a CAF spokesperson.

Historic Change for African Football

AFCON has been held every two years since 1957. The new decision marks a historic shift for the competition. Experts believe the quadrennial format could attract higher global viewership. It may also expand commercial opportunities and raise the tournament’s international profile.

AFCON has long showcased Africa’s footballing talent. Many stars who shine in European leagues first made their mark at the tournament. CAF’s move mirrors global tournaments like the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championship. A four-year schedule allows teams to develop talent and plan strategically.

Impact on Host Nations

For Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, the 2027 AFCON is a milestone opportunity. Co-hosting will stimulate tourism, create jobs, and improve sports infrastructure. CAF officials noted that a four-year cycle will help future hosts plan stadiums and facilities more effectively.

“This is a major moment for African football. While 2027 goes ahead as scheduled, the new format allows countries to bid and prepare for future tournaments with certainty,” said a CAF executive committee representative.

Reactions from African Football Stakeholders

Football federations across Africa welcomed the change. Players’ unions and league organizers said the biennial AFCON often clashes with domestic league schedules. It causes fatigue and increases injury risks. A quadrennial schedule offers a sustainable rhythm for athletes and leagues.

CAF President said the move is part of a long-term strategy to elevate African football globally. “We want AFCON to gain international recognition. The four-year cycle ensures competitive balance, commercial appeal, and more preparation time for our teams,” he said.

Looking Ahead

The decision positions AFCON to compete with other major tournaments. Analysts predict the quadrennial format will allow CAF to negotiate better broadcasting rights and sponsorship deals.

AFCON 2027, co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, will bridge the biennial past with the quadrennial future. Preparations include stadium upgrades, transport improvements, and hospitality enhancements to meet CAF standards.

Founder of Save the Elephants, Iain Douglas-Hamilton reshaped global conservation and exposed the ivory trade before his death in Nairobi.

Dr Iain Douglas-Hamilton: A Life for Elephants

Dr. Iain Douglas-Hamilton, the pioneering conservationist who transformed humanity’s understanding of elephants and helped galvanise the global fight against ivory trafficking, died peacefully in Nairobi on December 15, 2025, as the sun set over the city he long called home. He was 83.

Few individuals have shaped modern wildlife conservation as profoundly as Douglas-Hamilton. Scientist, campaigner, mentor and founder of Save the Elephants, he dedicated more than six decades to understanding and protecting Africa’s largest land mammal, revealing elephants not as anonymous giants but as intelligent, emotionally complex beings bound by deep family ties.

At just 23 years old, Douglas-Hamilton embarked on what would become one of the most influential wildlife studies in history: the first rigorous scientific research into the social behaviour of wild African elephants, conducted in Lake Manyara National Park in Tanzania. At a time when elephants were widely viewed as simple, instinct-driven animals, his work showed they possessed memory, empathy, social hierarchies and lifelong family bonds.

That research fundamentally altered how elephants were perceived — by scientists, policymakers and the public alike.

“He revealed elephants as thinking, feeling beings,” conservationists would later say. “Once you understood that, it became impossible to accept their destruction as inevitable.”

Exposing the Ivory Crisis

Douglas-Hamilton’s scientific curiosity soon collided with a growing catastrophe. In the 1970s and 1980s, Africa’s elephant populations were collapsing under the weight of industrial-scale poaching, driven by global demand for ivory. Drawing on field data, aerial surveys and painstaking population counts, he was among the first to quantify the scale of the slaughter.

His findings helped underpin the international push that led to the 1989 global ivory trade ban, enforced under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. The ban marked a turning point, and Douglas-Hamilton emerged as one of the most influential scientific voices behind it.

But he was never satisfied with advocacy alone.

Save the Elephants

In 1993, Douglas-Hamilton founded Save the Elephants, establishing its research base in Samburu, northern Kenya. The organisation would become a global leader in elephant conservation, blending science, technology and community-based protection.

Under his leadership, Save the Elephants pioneered the use of GPS satellite collars to track elephant movements across vast landscapes, generating some of the most detailed migration data ever collected. That work reshaped conservation planning across Africa, influencing the design of wildlife corridors and transboundary protection agreements.

Douglas-Hamilton believed conservation would only succeed if local communities were partners, not obstacles.

“Protecting elephants meant protecting coexistence,” he often argued — an approach that placed pastoralists, rangers and researchers on the same side of the struggle.

A Mentor and a Scientist at Heart

Despite international recognition, Douglas-Hamilton remained at heart a field scientist. Friends and colleagues recall that he was happiest sitting with young researchers over maps of elephant tracks, debating migration patterns or puzzling over behaviour.

He mentored dozens of African and international scientists, many of whom now lead conservation programmes across the continent. His influence, colleagues say, extended far beyond elephants.

“Iain changed the future not just for elephants, but for countless people around the world,” said Frank Pope, Chief Executive Officer of Save the Elephants and Douglas-Hamilton’s son-in-law. “His courage, determination and rigour inspired everyone he met. Whether sitting quietly among elephants, poring over maps of their movements or circling above a herd in his beloved aircraft, that glint in his eye was always there. He never lost his lifelong curiosity about what was happening inside the minds of one of our planet’s most intriguing creatures.”

A Family Rooted in Conservation

Douglas-Hamilton’s work was inseparable from his family life. Together with his wife Oria, he raised their daughters Saba and Dudu, both of whom went on to devote their lives to conservation and storytelling for nature.

He is survived by six grandchildren, several of whom, the family has said, dream of following his path in science, conservation and exploration.

The family has requested privacy during this time of mourning.

A Lasting Legacy

By the time of his death, Douglas-Hamilton had lived long enough to witness a partial recovery of elephant populations in parts of Africa — and the resurgence of threats that demand constant vigilance.

His legacy endures not only in academic papers or conservation institutions, but in living elephants — in families that migrate safely across landscapes mapped and defended by the science he championed.

He believed that understanding was the foundation of protection. Once people truly knew elephants, he believed, they would fight for them.

In that belief, and in the lives he touched, Iain Douglas-Hamilton’s work continues to walk the African plains.