AFCON
Super Eagles have the third best attire at AFCON says ESPN
If a sort of fashion parade were to be made at the current Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, the Super Eagles’ attire, in the ranking done by American media giants, ESPN, will rank third.
Coincidentally, Nigeria have raked the third position in the Africa Cup of Nations more than any other country has done.
Below is the ranking done under the headline: “AFCON kit rankings: Who has the best jersey at Africa’s showstopper?”
From Cameroon‘s sleeve-less Puma design between 2002 and 2004 to Nike’s iconic Nigeria kit released for the 2018 World Cup, Africa has been responsible for some of the most eye-catching football strips in the international arena.
There are a few gems set for show on the ‘catwalks’ of Cameroon at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations, where a diverse array of manufacturers are serving up a variety of unique one-off styles and creative African-inspired kit compositions.
Here, ESPN has ranked every one of the 24 Nations Cup contenders’ couture contributions.
24. Sudan
Red shirt, white collar, discreet design on the fabric…and that’s about it. We’re not entirely sure that Sudan’s decision to ditch Puma for Solo Sport was a wise one…
23. Guinea
Irish brand Masita’s concept for Guinea, with Elephant tusks flanking the imprint of an elephant on the shirt’s chest, sounds exciting, but the kit ends up feeling a little too sparse when worn in a match context.
22. Gambia
Debutants Gambia are still being served by long-term partners and German manufacturers Saller who, predictably, have stuck with a safe and solid route for the Scorpions’ Nations Cup kits.
There are bonus points for an asymmetrical design — the right shoulder boasts a white strip — but it’s not enough for this effort to stand out in a crowded field.
21. Ethiopia
Umbro have unveiled some solid — if a bit dull — designs for Ethiopia. It remains to be seen whether the ‘ETHIOPIA’ text across the chest — which gives the kits a nice retro feel — will be retained for the tournament or replaced with player numbers, although either way, the effort appears staid compared to the team’s eye-catching training kits.
The red third strip does boast an excellent ‘Tibeb’ traditional textile pattern, described by Umbro as a ‘wagon wheel graphic’, and if one nation in the tournament ought to go down the ‘vintage’ route, it’s 1962 winners Ethiopia
20. Malawi
Malawi’s shirts have been produced by IsaDi — the International Sports Apparel Design Institute — a company owned by former Crystal Palace and Fulham midfielder Kagisho Dikgacoi, who’s ensuring at least some Bafana Bafana representation at the Nations Cup…
The designs themselves have a lot going on, with a red background covered in black diagonal pinstripes, bisected by a black strip down the front, flanked by thin green lines.
We’re disappointed there aren’t more flames involved — Malawi does translate as ‘The Land where the sun is reflected in the water like fire’ after all — but there’s no shortage of ideas thrown into this one.
Unlike the Guinea effort, this busy design looks better on the players during a match than it does in photographs…mercifully.
19. Equatorial Guinea
Errea have thrown a lot into these Equatorial Guinea designs which, as a collection, appear to lack a common thread despite some innovation.
The red home kit paired with blue shorts and socks is reminiscent of Chile, while the blue away kit breaks the cardinal rule of football shirts by employing more than three colours in a single piece. Only Brazil can get away with that.
The pick of the bunch is the white third strip, where a unique mottled red wrap-around graphic will surely stand out if it gets an airing.
18. Tunisia
The jury’s still out on whether the new Tunisia kits sit on the right or wrong side of the subtle-dull divide. We appreciate the interpretation of Arabic calligraphy woven into the design by Kappa, and perhaps the largely understated strip is exactly what’s appropriate for a national team who aren’t traditionally known for their flair or flamboyance.
17. Algeria
40 years on from Algeria’s shock victory over Germany at the 1982 World Cup, Adidas have surely missed a trick in not evoking those iconic kits — complete with Arabic script on the front spelling out al-Jazā’ir (Algeria) — with their 2022 designs.
The white home kit — released in late 2020 — keeps it simple…very simple…with the green Adidas stripes far more noticeable than a slightly-too-subtle pattern on the fabric.
The away kit is, as expected, green, and of all the shades that Adidas could have chosen for this version of their Condivo 21 template, these were perhaps not the most inspiring.
16. Mauritania
Points for originality from Moroccan designers AB Sport, with Mauritania going for a green kit, with a yellow wispy design down the middle, and red trim around the neck and under the arms.
It’s all a bit too wishy-washy to rank among the top shirts at the AFCON, although the white away kit does have a nice fresh feel.
15. Senegal
These Puma designs, while elegant, feel like a bit of a step back for Senegal after the glory days of those mesmerising Romai designs that they wore at the 2017 Nations Cup and beyond.
The home kit boasts an all-round pattern design, with red-green-yellow peeping through the fabric after being printed on the inside of the garment. It was a design decision taken by Puma after FIFA restrictions prevented them from using such a bold design on the exterior of the shirt
14. Cape Verde
The only team in the tournament to wear blue, the islanders will be hoping to intimidate a few opponents with the rather disgruntled-looking shark’s head that bisects the players’ midriff on each of their three strips. A strong effort by Austrian manufacturer Tempo Sport, who signed a multi-year contract with Cape Verde to replace Adidas.
13. Egypt
Puma have opted to restore black to the latest Egyptian jerseys — launched in late 2020 — after the Pharaohs wore an all-red effort for their ill-fated campaign on home soil.
As with a few other Puma designs, the strong shoulder strip exudes stature, while a beautiful design – resembling hieroglyphics – also makes for a compelling addition to the AFCON 2021 catwalk.
This is certainly a worthy kit for Mohamed Salah and co. to wear as they go in search of that record-extending eighth continental crown.
12. Cameroon
In the minds of some, Cameroon should always and only wear Puma, and their Le Coq Sportif designs for the tournament on home soil are unlikely to see too many converts, despite their inimitably French style.
A more vibrant shade of green could have been chosen for the home kit — the one on the federation’s logo, perhaps? — and they’ve ditched the red and yellow chevron on the chest, shedding the Girondins de Bordeaux echo in the process.
The Indomitable Lion’s head covers the player’s heart on the home kit, with the FECAFOOT crest moving – unorthodoxly -over to the right, although it returns to the left-hand side for the delicious away kit.
A simplistic design with the Pan-African Cameroonian green-red-yellow on the left shoulder, this effort could be one of the stand-out designs of the Nations Cup.
11. Burkina Faso
The Stallions have turned to local kit firm Tovio, and have been rewarded with some of the more innovative designs of the tournament.
The home kit is a green effort with a stylised Burkinabe flag bleeding into the green of the kit on the throat, while the white ‘away’ kit boasts a jagged Burkina Faso flag right down the centre.
The racing stallions woven discreetly into the fabric are another notable design element which vindicate Burkina Faso’s decision to ditch Kappa for the Ouagadougou sportswear brand, who also produced attire for the country’s Olympians last year.
10. Guinea-Bissau
Guisport have delivered a series of loud efforts for Guinea-Bissau’s third AFCON campaign in a row. What they may lack in sophistication and elegance, they certainly compensate for in vitality and joyfulness, with the yellow design arguably the pick of the bunch.
Guinea-Bissau opted to partner with a local manufacturer for this sporting cycle, and they’ve been rewarded with designs that could prove to be among the neutral’s favourites. That diamond design on the red home kit doesn’t half give us flashbacks to Spain circa World Cup ’94 as well.
9. Sierra Leone
One of several examples of Umbro’s excessive outpouring of creativity. The blue home kit has a unique design where the more you look, the more you see within a kaleidoscope pattern that has psychedelic qualities and references traditional African fabric.
While the white away kit is a pure design with the Sierra Leone flag referenced in a green block under the collar and a blue block at the base of the shirt, the green third choice kit looks like Umbro poured too much blue ink out onto the page.
As a collection, there will be some detractors, although this lot has the potential to grown in appreciation.
8. Morocco
A lovely, clean, stylish design from Puma, who have pairedMorocco’s rich dark red strip with a green granddad collar. The button at the top of the neck is a delightful little touch, as are the patterned shoulders.
7. Zimbabwe
Some of the more divisive efforts of the Nations Cup from Umbro, as they’ve gone for a paintbrush effect on Zim’s home kit — with the colours of the nation’s flag daubed from right to left.
It’s a similar story for the ‘thatched’ away kit, with yellow and white peaking through black and multiple shades of green to create something of a stained glass window effect. For chromatic fantasy, this lot can’t be beaten.
6. Ivory Coast
Another of the five Puma contributions to the Nations Cup, the Ivory Coast shirt is instantly recognisable due to their simple but striking orange and green colour scheme.
The green shoulder bands give this design strength and authority, although fans will be hoping that Eric Bailly and his fellow defenders demonstrate more of both qualities than they did at the Olympic Games.
The black and white away kit lacks the same vitality of the home jersey, and has the whiff of insipid training attire.
5. Ghana
Another Puma design from the ‘Crafted From Culture’ range, and perhaps the most viral kits to be on show at this year’s tournament, Ghana’s home and away kits share a unique graphic that is inspired by Ghanaian culture and the vitality of local fabric.
The black star — the nation’s symbol and nickname — takes prominence on both the white home and the yellow away kit, and Puma’s Head of Product line management Teamsport David Bremond gushed about the designs when he spoke to ESPN in late 2020.
“We took inspiration from Ghanaian architecture, mixing this up with some very traditional colours as well,” Bremond explained. “[The kit is a] mix of traditional architecture, art and the colours of the country.”
4. Mali
Sure to be a darling among the neutrals, the eagle — talons bared — that jumps off the breastbone of the kit is a unique design choice, which evokes some memories of the leopard’s head worn by Zaire during their 1974 World Cup campaign.
The way the eagle’s wings morph into the kit’s green shoulders above the yellow and red bands of the Mali flag is also an inspired choice, and credit must go to French designers Airness for their successful design.
Sure to be a favourite among the street sellers and hawkers in West Africa for years to come, there’s also something of the modern American sports apparel about this quintessentially African design.
3. Nigeria
There’s a slight ‘second album’ syndrome from Nike with this design, as they’ve not quite stepped far enough away from their iconic 2018 design to avoid direct comparisons, which will — somewhat unfairly — not favour the newer effort particularly fondly.
As a standalone effort, their new Agbada robe-inspired design still deserves to be considered as one of the finest African kits as Nike continue to set the tone for Naija sports fashion.
The away kit, which reflects the fabric pattern of the home shirt in neck and sleeve trims, is another strong contribution.
2. Gabon
A potential instant classic, Gabon’s third choice kit displays the nation’s flag – a green, yellow and blue tricolour – in a chainmail design, splashed diagonally across the shirt.
It has the potential to be one of the standout shirts of the tournament… if the Panthers get the opportunity to show it off.
The home shirt, with a roaring panther rising up across the strip, is another classy effort, and this this Selecao-esque contribution from Kappa is a nod to Gabon’s ‘Brazilians’ nickname.
1. Comoros
Debutants Comoros may sit bottom of the pile as far as title-winning hopes are concerned, but we absolutely love this composition from Italians Macron, who have done excellent work with the likes of Udinese, Sampdoria, and Edinburgh Rugby in recent times.
While there are so many design elements to this shirt — not least the Comorian flag trimming the sleeves, or the flag’s crest-and-star design on the body of the kit — they’ve been assembled in such a way as to make a stylish and classy design, rather than a garish hotchpotch.
Two shades of green is a bold choice, while the gold neck — the colour choice symbolising ‘marriage and traditional clothing’ according to the manufacturers — simultaneously anchors and lifts the design.
Our favourite detail is the discreet ‘Chiromani’ motifs under the arm, which pay tribute to the women of the Comoros and the family unit.
The white and blue two-tone away and third choice kits are similarly resonant and timeless, although with Comoros drawn against Gabon, Morocco and Ghana in their opening group, don’t expect to see these beautiful designs in the knockout stages.
NFF’s Director of Communications, Dr Ademola Olajire, provides a point-by-point account of how a keenly-anticipated Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match was relegated to a fiasco by Libyan federal authorities and Football Federation
1) The chartered ValueJet aircraft departed from the Victor Attah International Airport, Uyo at 11.55hours on Sunday, 13th October 2024, and landed at the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano at 13.10hours, for the completion of immigration formalities and for the aircraft to refuel.
2) The aircraft took off from Kano at 15.18hours, for the 3 hours and 35 minutes flight to Benghazi, Libya, expecting to arrive a few minutes before 8pm Libya time.
3) Just as he was about to commence his initial approach into Benghazi, the captain (pilot) was instructed by the control tower that he could not land in Benghazi (despite having all the required landing papers and having completed all formalities before leaving Uyo and later, Kano, but should proceed to the Al-Abraq International Airport, even though the airport lacked the control navigators for landing at such hours. He complained that he was short on fuel but his words fell on deaf ears as he was told sternly that the directive was from ‘higher authorities.’
4) On landing at the Al-Abraq International Airport, in the small town of Labraq, at 19.50 hours, it was clear that the airport was not a well-utilized facility. There were no scanning machines or the usual equipment for this service, and officials had to make do with mobile phones to scan passport data pages.
5) The delegation, which included 22 players and team officials; NFF President Alh. Ibrahim Musa Gusau; Deputy Governor of Edo State, Comrade Philip Shaibu; a couple of NFF Board members; NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi; a couple of parliamentarians; a couple of NFF Management; a couple of media representatives and; a couple of stakeholders, was shown scant respect by the airport authorities who applied curt manners and stern tones.
6) It took over one hour for the team’s luggage to roll through the carousel, despite the fact that the bags and other items had already been hauled from the aircraft immediately on arrival.
7) No official of the Libyan Football Federation was at the airport to receive the delegation, as is the best practice globally. Airport officials could not answer the simple question on where the buses that would take the delegation members back to Benghazi (where the NFF had booked hotel rooms) were.
8) When delegation members including the NFF President, Comrade Shaibu and Dr Sanusi attempted to venture outside the airport to ascertain if there were vehicles waiting for the team, they were stopped in the most uncouth of manners by airport security personnel.
9) Calls to the General Secretary of LFF, Mr. Abdul-Nasser by Dr Sanusi yielded no fruits as the former kept promising that the buses would arrive in ‘10 minutes’, which later became ‘two hours’, and afterwards, ‘three hours.’ Later in the evening, it was no longer possible to reach him on the phone. Frustrated by this attitude, Dr Sanusi approached the security operatives to request that the team be allowed to go out and board the buses the NFF eventually hired. This request was rejected with insults. It took the intervention of the NFF dignitaries to prevent what would have escalated into a row as the NFF President himself was not spared when he heard an exchange of voices between the security personnel and his General Secretary. This aggravated the tension and further frustrated the team.
10) Hour after hour, and with mounting frustration, delegation members, particularly the players, grew restless. There was no food or water provided by the LFF, or where to even procure these items, and there was no network or internet connection at the airport. These swiftly increased the level of frustration and anger.
11) At past midnight, it was learnt that there had been word from ‘higher authorities’ (Libya is a jurisdiction governed by two different administrations – a UN-recognized cabinet in Tripoli and a self-imposed team over Eastern Libya including places like Benghazi and Labraq) that the Nigeria delegation should be delayed for minimum of 10 hours at the airport for what they falsely claimed was done to their team in Nigeria. (All conversations between the NFF General Secretary and the LFF General Secretary on the match in Uyo, both written text and voices notes, are still in the NFF General Secretary’s phone)
12) The NFF team was shocked because the incident referred to in Nigeria was entirely generated by the Libyans. They informed the NFF that their contingent would be landing in Port Harcourt, and not Uyo, only two hours to the team’s arrival in Nigeria. Despite this, the NFF moved swiftly to get authorities to grant their aircraft movement permit from Port Harcourt to Uyo, but this was jettisoned as the LFF apparently did not cherish the additional fee dispatched by the charter company. They opted to travel by road, refused to use the buses hired by the NFF and instead hired their own, and disrespected advice not to travel by night. When they stuck to their guns to move by night, the NFF provided security. The NFF even provided the team training facility the day after the match and secured direct flight permit from Uyo to Benghazi for the delegation.
13) Infuriated, the NFF President reacted: “We anticipated some shocks here given the false account of what happened in Nigeria as narrated by their team captain. But we did not expect these shenanigans. What I am seeing is despicable and has no place in the game of football which is meant to foster excellent relationships among nations and bring peoples from diverse cultures, religious persuasions and economic and political interests together in an ambience of peace and joy.”
14) The NFF learnt that the Embassy of Nigeria in Tripoli had written, a fortnight earlier, to the authorities in Benghazi that they would want to welcome the Nigeria delegation on arrival. This application was said to have been rejected outright.
15) In a conscious effort to play down their frustration, anger and hunger, players and officials resorted to playing games, listening to music, chatting themselves up, scanning through the airport exit door to see if any vehicles had arrived, and generally looked forward to daybreak, which they hoped would bring much-sought-after relief.
16) Many calls were made to higher authorities in Nigeria to apprise them of the situation, and these persons all expressed fears for the safety and security of the team. These fears were real and justified given the plethora of threats thrown by the Libyans on legacy and social media in the days before and after the match in Uyo. At 2am, Captain William Ekong met the NFF President in the company of the NFF General Secretary to inform the President that the team may not be able to go ahead with the match, due to trauma, fatigue and body aches that resulted from lack of food, dehydration and very cruel and unimaginable treatment, which had led to some players falling ill.
17) The NFF repeated calls to officials of the Confederation of African Football, Nigeria’s FIFA Council Member Mr. Amaju Melvin Pinnick and higher authorities in Nigeria. It dispatched a letter to CAF in which it detailed the antics of the hosts and hoped that the continental governing body would go ahead to “punish this rare bestiality visited on the beautiful game.” It noted that the Super Eagles had travelled hoping to enjoy a great game of football but had been sorely disappointed and frustrated by the unprecedented level of hostility and poor attitude of the hosts.
18) At daybreak, Mr. Maurice Eromosele, president of the Nigerian community in Eastern Libya, arrived with words of empathy from the Ambassador of Nigeria to Libya, His Excellency Alhaji Muhammad Muhammad. He expressed shock at the treatment meted out to the Nigeria delegation, who were made to spend the entire night inside the departure lounge of the Al-Abraq Airport. He said His Excellency ordered him to get a few things for the team, and he later returned with plastic bags loaded with croissants and drinks. These served as breakfast for the team.
19) More calls were made and eventually, it was agreed by all parties that the team should not go ahead with the match, but return to Nigeria to await the decision of CAF (who were briefed in detail on the situation) with regards to the un-played match.
20) After spending many more hours waiting for the Al-Abraq airport authorities to sell fuel to refill the chartered ValueJet aircraft (which was initially proving to be some sort of robotic engineering), the Nigeria delegation departed the Al-Abraq Airport (not worth the toga of ‘international’ by any scale) at exactly 15.05hours, bound for the city of Kano, and onwards to the Federal Capital, Abuja.
Two former African Footballers of the Year, Emmanuel Adebayo of Togo and Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang of Gabon have condemned the actions of the Libyan authorities who subjected the Super Eagles of Nigeria to inhumane treatment at the Al Abaq Airport Adebayor was the African Footballer of the Year in 2008 while Aubameyang won the 2015 edition.
Local authorities left the Nigerian contingents unattended for more than 15 hours after they arrived on Sunday night.
Players were seen sleeping on the bench, and the team’s doctors raised concerns over their health ahead of the match.
Adebayor, a legend of African football and Arsenal wrote on X-platform:
“Nigerian Super Eagles were stranded at a Libyan airport, locked in without food, wi-fi, or a place to sleep after their flight was diverted.
“This type of behaviour is unacceptable for the progress of African football. No team should face such treatment. We stand with Nigeria’s Super Eagles.
“Respect and fair play must come first on and off the field.”
His Gabonese counterpart, Aubameyang who also played for Arsenal that the Libyan action should not happen in 2024. He wrote on X:
“Anyway that is not possible in 2024 acting like that.”
In a related development, the cheerleader of Nigerian football, Dr. Raufu Ladipo told Sports Village Square: “It is a big shame that an African country will treat our Super Eagles this way. It is barbaric. If they could do this to our team,
“One could imagine what they would have done to members of the supporters club . It is high time CAF and indeed, FIFA takes a very serious look and takes a decision that will serve as deterrent to forestall future occurrence.”
Just as the Nigerian delegation is set to return to the country from Libya, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has waded in and referred the matter to its disciplinary board for investigation and appropriate action will be taken against those who violated the CAF Statutes and Regulations.
CAF issued the following statement:
“The Confederation Africaine de Football (CAF) has been in contact with the Libyan and Nigerian authorities after it had been informed that the Nigerian National Football Team (‘’Super Eagles’’) and their technical team were stranded in disturbing conditions for several hours at an airport that they were allegedly instructed to land by the Libyan authorities.
“The matter has been referred to the CAF Disciplinary Board for investigation and appropriate action will be taken against those who violated the CAF Statutes and Regulations.”
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