Morocco, Algeria set to host Cup of Nations tournaments

Morocco and Algeria are favoured to be named hosts of the 2025 and 2027 Africa Cup of Nations tournaments respectively, with an announcement to be made in Cairo on Wednesday.

Each are in search of to stage the 2025 version of the premier African sport occasion, together with Zambia and a joint Nigeria-Benin bid.

Algeria additionally entered the 2027 contest, as did Botswana, Egypt, Senegal and a mixed Kenya-Tanzania-Uganda problem.

After quite a few deadlines handed with out the hosts being revealed, a senior African Soccer Confederation (CAF) official informed AFP “the 2 hosts will certainly be named on September 27”.

Govt committee members will vote after finding out impartial value determinations of every 2025 and 2027 candidate, however politics and a promise of regional rotation have sophisticated issues.

North African neighbours Algeria and Morocco have an adversarial political relationship, which entered the soccer enviornment this yr.

A ban on Moroccan plane flying over Algeria led to the withdrawal of the crew representing the dominion from the 2022/2023 African Nations Championship (CHAN) for home-based gamers.

Morocco had gained the earlier two editions and when their request to fly on to Algeria was denied, they boycotted the match, robbing it of one of many title favourites.

Each international locations boast excellent stadia and infrastructure and football-loving populations, and are able to delivering world-class Cup of Nations tournaments.

However each wish to be the 2025 hosts with main Moroccan and CAF official Fouzi Lekjaa inflicting a mid-year stir when he informed native politicians that the dominion could be chosen.

Home media quoted him saying “the Fes stadium can have the honour of internet hosting CAN (Cup of Nations) 2025 matches when Morocco wins the organisation”.

The decades-long diplomatic dispute has spilled onto the soccer pitch, with sporting rivalry changing into an growing supply of competitors and friction.

How Algeria & Morocco’s political rivalry spilled into soccer https://t.co/zON40aRzY8

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) April 9, 2023

CAF president and South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe is aware of the political rivalry between the neighbours.

“We should not become involved in what is occurring between Algeria and Morocco. CAF ought to by no means intervene in politics,” he stated through the CHAN match.

Motsepe has hailed the organisational talents of each international locations, who’ve every staged the Cup of Nations as soon as with Morocco doing so in 1988 and Algeria two years later.

“Morocco has typically flawlessly hosted main competitions whereas the CHAN in Algeria this yr was the most effective ever,” he stated.

Throughout the CHAN, Motsepe stated he needed every area to host the Cup of Nations: “We can not assign the organisation of the CAN successively to the identical area.”

Nonetheless, a number of months later, CAF secretary basic Veron Mosengo-Omba stated regional rotation might not all the time be doable.

“At this time, solely 5 or 6 international locations out of the 54 CAF members are in a position to apply to host the African Cup. Consequently, it won’t be doable to make this alternation,” he stated.

What started in 1957 as a three-team match is now a 24-nation occasion that includes stars resembling Mohamed Salah, Victor Osimhen, Andre Onana, Sadio Mane and Hakim Ziyech.

Hosts should have a minimal of six stadiums — two with a capability of at the least 40,000 and 4 in a position to accommodate 20,000 or extra spectators.

The Ivory Coast will stage the 2023/2024 Cup of Nations, which has been postponed from June and July this yr to January and February subsequent yr to keep away from the wet season.