CAF chief, Motsepe, reiterates Africa’s readiness for AFCON amid cancelation rumours

President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Patrice Motsepe, has assured all and sundry that the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is set to hold as rescheduled next month.

The competition had been billed to hold in 2021 but was postponed to January 2022 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

International media and other football bodies have recently been calling for yet another postponement especially following the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron.

But Motsepe says the showpiece will go on as planned, and will take place between 9 January and 6 February, 2022 in Cameroon.

“I will be in Cameroon on 7 January with my wife and kids to witness this incredible competition,” Motsepe insisted on Monday.

“You can see that there’s a huge commitment and a focus to make sure that there’s good progress.

“We are going to host with the people of Cameroon an exceptional tournament. It will be the most successful Afcon. We are ready to show the world the best of African football and African hospitality.

“This tournament is important for the people of Africa and I’m so proud and so excited with the work done.”

Read Also: CAF reiterates support for World Cup to hold every two years

The 59-year-old, who had just been elected President of the continental football body, also seemed surprised by the continued rumours surrounding the finals.

“We have to believe in our people,” the Caf boss said. “We have to stop being the ones that lack confidence and are always expressing negative views of our people.

“All over the world there are competitions with challenges but we have to be more optimistic because sometimes we are over critical of ourselves.

“If we’re not going to have confidence in what we do, who’s going to have confidence in us?

“This is the generation where Africans must believe in Africans. We can host a football competition that’s as good as you can see in Europe and the world.”

A total of 24 teams will be competing at the Games.

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