AFCON
Africa Cup of Nations organisers confident no repeat of Cameroon tragedy
All is on track for African football’s biennial showpiece, the Africa Cup of Nations, according to organisers in the Ivory Coast who are confident their security measures will prevent a repeat of the tragedy that overshadowed the 2022 edition in Cameroon.
Cote d’Ivoire may be one of the heavyweights in African football but this will be only the second time they host the finals, after 1984 when the tournament featured just eight teams instead of the 24 this time round.
The competition runs from January 13 to February 11 with Senegal defending the title they won for the first time after beating Egypt on penalties.
It retains its 2023 moniker despite the decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in July last year to postpone it from the original dates in the northern hemisphere summer owing to fears over staging matches during the rainy season.
Around $1.5 billion has been invested which includes funding improved roads — principally a complete overhaul of the 350-kilometre coastal road which links Abidjan — the economic capital — to the port city of San Pedro, cutting in half the travel time between the two.
Aside from the external security risk posed by jihadists based in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, Ivorian authorities have moved to quell fears over crowd control which has been the source of most anxiety due to what happened in Yaounde two years ago.
The last-16 clash between hosts Cameroon and the Comoros resulted in eight dying and dozens injured due to a crush as home fans piled in to watch.
Youssouf Kouyate, director-general of the Ivory Coast police, told AFP they had measures in place for all six stadia to avoid a similar tragedy — with organisers expecting 1.5 million fans from outside the country.
“We are going to open the gates to the stadia very early, we will ensure the spectators form an orderly queue so they can enter the stadium without any trouble,” he said.
“We are going to demand spectators come early.”
There will be some 17,000 soldiers and police deployed for the tournament and 2,500 stadium staff.
“It is after all not the first big sporting event Ivory Coast has had to organise,” said Kouyate.
“We hosted the Francophone Games (in 2017). We are calm.”
– ‘Fit for purpose’ –
It was not so calm a few months ago when to the embarrassment of the organisers torrential rain flooded the pitch at the 60,000-capacity Ebimpe Olympic Stadium which had been specially constructed at enormous cost for the tournament.
The stadium is due to host 10 matches including the opening game between Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau on January 13, and the final on February 11.
The authorities put it down to a freak downpour but all the same it resulted in Patrick Achi and Paulin Danho being removed from their posts as prime minister and sports minister respectively.
Achi’s successor Robert Beugre Mambe — who also assumed the role of sports minister — has been charged with “organising the most beautiful Africa Cup of Nations in history”.
Three months on from the shame of the flooding it appears under Mambe’s stewardship the pitch is now resistant to a similar catastrophe.
“We were all disturbed by what we saw,” said Idriss Diallo, president of the Ivorian football federation, at the beginning of December whilst sitting in a stand at the stadium with rain tipping down.
“But the authorities took the matter in hand and the pitch has been completely relaid.”
“It is fit for purpose,” he added.
There have been concerns that the main stadium plus the five others to be used in Abidjan, Yamoussoukro, Bouake, San Pedro and Korhogo will become white elephants.
Organisers hope that the First Division teams — the majority of whom play in Abidjan — will attract larger crowds due to the proximity of the stadia.
Diallo thinks there will also be a knock-on effect globally.
“Thanks to our stadia we will become a hub for teams in the region who do not have such facilities,” he said.
“Before they all went to play in Morocco, now they will come here.”
-AFP
What a turn-around! After four previous competitive matches without a win, the Super Eagles have regained their winning mentality after a 3-0 defeat of Benin Republic in their opening 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying series.
The win also put the Super Eagles at the top of the Group D after both Libya and Rwanda played 1-1 draw last Thursday.
It is also the biggest win by the Super Eagles since their 2023 6-0 win over Sao Tome & Principe last year September.
Great man Ademola Lookman, he put in two goals straightening the possibility of his emerging as 2024 African Footballer of the Year.
The current title holder, Victor Osimhen proved his mettle coming off the bench in the second half to double Nigeria’s lead after Lookman’s late first half goal.
The Super Eagles will now honour their next fixture against Rwanda on Tuesday with the hope of consolidating their lead.
Benin Republic with no points and a deficit of three goals are rooted at the bottom of the log.
BY JOSEPH ODOEKWU
The National Chairman of the Nigerian Football Supporters Club (NFSC), Rev. Samuel Ikpea has called on all Nigerians to rally round and pray for the Super Eagles ahead of Saturday’s Morocco 2025 AFCON qualifier against Benin Republic in Uyo.
Ikpea who is mobilizing support for the Super Eagles ahead of the clash in Uyo said that whatever Benin Republic come with both spiritually and physically in the game, we will surely overcome them.
“In the NFSC we have Christians, Muslims as well as those who believe in traditional worship and we respect the rights of freedom of worship of every member and all Nigerians.
“When we are faced with this kind of crucial game, we call on everyone to pray through their various believes because we foresee that Benin Republic are most likely coming to fall back on ‘black magic’ to enable them perfect a back-to-back victory over our Super Eagles after beating us 2-1 in our last meeting in a World Cup qualifier”
“We cannot underestimate the efficacy of the black magic” Ikpea further stressed, “but we believe that when we come together we can neutralize it’s efficacy.
“This is no time to sleep, we all have to rally round and do our best to support our Super Eagles because they cannot do it alone without the prayers and support of all Nigerians.
“While charging Nigerians to be positive with the team, we at the NFSC have done everything positive to overturn whatever plans they are coming with and we enjoin everyone to toe that path through prayers”.
Meanwhile, the Super Eagles camp is bubbling with training in Uyo, as team Coach Austin Eguavoen, has been working hard to perfect tactics with the boys and ensure the Super Eagles soar on Saturday.
The Super Eagles have not won a qualifying match for any competition since their 6-0 defeat of Principe & Sao Tome on 10th September 2023 in Uyo. That was their last qualifying match for Cote d’Ivoire 2023 played in 2024.
Since then, they have played four World Cup qualifying matches without a win despite being the overwhelming favourites at those matches.
A forensic analysis of their World Cup qualifying since that of Qatar 2022 will reveal they had played seven consecutive matches without a win starting from their 1-1 home draw with Cape Verde in Lagos which qualified them for the play off. In the play off with Ghana, the Super Eagles drew the two matches.
In the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, they have gone four matches, getting three draws and a loss. The prospect of their getting a straight qualification from the group is doubtful as they have a mountain to climb by winning the remaining six matches, three of which are away duels of which are most likely to be played in South Africa, the home ground of their main rivals.
Zimbabwe and Lesotho play their home matches in South Africa and Nigeria also still have an away duel with Bafana Bafana.
The qualification series of AFCON 2025 presents the Super Eagles a new beginning. Starting from the semi-finals of the AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire, the team has won none of their four competitive matches in regulation time. The players have a date with destiny in Uyo this Saturday to wipe off the sagging image they have had in recent time.
A win will give the team the confidence expected in anticipation for future fixtures.
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