After several days of suspense, the president of the African Football Confederation (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, announced Tuesday, December 21, that the African Football Cup of Nations (CAN) would take place in Cameroon from 9 January. The announcement, following an audience with Cameroonian President Paul Biya in Yaoundé, was very well received across Africa.
The pressures coming in particular from Europe did not get the better of the determination of Cameroonians and Africans in general to host the African Cup of Nations (CAN), despite the increasingly strong threat of the Omicron variant. In less than 48 hours, what promised to be a new setback for the country of the Indomitable Lions, already excluded from the organization of the competition in 2019, then forced to postpone the competition for a year, was therefore avoided.
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A psychodrama whose main winners are necessarily the Cameroonian authorities, the African Football Confederation (CAF) obviously, but also Samuel Eto’o, the new president of the Cameroonian Football Federation (Fecafoot), whose speech on Tuesday was very noticed.
As for the European clubs, they may not have lost everything. They will put pressure on certain players summoned to withdraw. And they expressed their desire to see the CAN no longer be played in winter in the future, but perhaps in the fall as suggested on Tuesday by the president of the International Federation of Association Football (Fifa). A Gianni Infantino accused of having exerted pressure, but who ultimately avoids a postponement which would necessarily have damaged his image in an African continent which he needs to carry out his reforms.
” A victory, first for the African people “
This news has in any case delighted and relieved Cameroonians. Met in a bistro in Yaoundé, Jacques, Eric and Caroline celebrated the continued organization of the next CAN by Cameroon: ” It really is a sigh of relief. With everything that was said in the media, all Cameroonians were on alert, everyone is happy », Reacts Jacques.
” We are waiting for all of Africa and the whole world to come and vibrate on behalf of the CAN. Welcome to Cameroon », Rejoices Eric.
“ The African Cup will be a great and beautiful celebration for Africa. It will be an event that will boost Cameroon, both economically and tourism. », Caroline believes.
For his part, Claude judges that Africa has just won a victory against the European Association of Clubs (ECA) which worked for the postponement of this competition: ” For me, this is a victory, first for the African people, who have shown that they can also stand up to these European bodies. Now they have to free our players. “
For his part, this Cameroonian is not surprised by the maintenance of the CAN on the scheduled date: ” With all that Cameroon has invested, nearly 2,000 billion to build the most beautiful stadiums in the world, we have invested in hospitals, catering, it was to be expected! “
“ I am very happy to finally be able to play this CAN “
The organization of the CAN having been acquired, the next bet is that of mass vaccination, a pledge to have stadiums filled in the midst of Covid.
For the coach of the Eagles of Mali, Mohamed Magassouba, this decision is logical. He will travel to Cameroon with his team without the slightest fear related to the health situation. “ I am very happy to finally be able to play this CAN in Cameroon, which as a reminder was to take place already in 2019. So I would say happy finally to be able to play this continental competition in Cameroon. », He emphasizes.
For him, this decision is the right one. ” Living in Africa we will say 95% of the time of the year, I would say yes, there is the Covid in Africa, it is true, it is everywhere, it is global. But on the continent until today, I do not have the impression that we have had many cases. And I think it’s a good decision for the continent, for African football to finally be able to compete. I have faith in the CAF which will organize all the health protocols so that the players, the staffs, and I hope the supporters, can come and participate in the party, and that everything goes well. “
European clubs worried
If African football is rejoicing, the big European clubs, for their part, take a very dim view of the maintenance of the African Cup of Nations. ” An invisible monster that takes your players from the locker room without knowing when you will find them “, According to Lucianio Spalleti, the coach of Naples. Many clubs have put an end to it. In question, a health protocol that they consider insufficient and the risk of losing their best players for a long time.
So, are the European clubs going to play the game? For Vincent Chaudel, consultant of the Observatory of Sport Business, resistance will be particularly on the side of England. “ The players who will leave for CAN, the British clubs do not know if they will be able to return in time to perform at the time of very important deadlines for the big European clubs. It is really a subject of tension that there can be between the employer clubs which pay the players of the 1er January to December 31, and selections. It is a subject of recurring conflict, but there, over this period in January, it is in full Mercato. The players of great African talents all play in the Premier League. I think they will play CAN, forced and forced. They don’t want it for some. But they will and somewhere, it’s good because if Egypt had to do without Mohamed Salah, if Algeria had to play without Ryad Mahrez for example, it would be an CAN whose legitimacy could be called into question. athletic. It would be a shame. “