Wayne Lumbasi
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is considering postponing the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. The 17th edition of the continental championship, was initially scheduled for June 23 to July 23, 2023 in Cote d’lvoire.
Exactly a year before kick-off, major cities in the West African country are experiencing heavy rains with floods. And CAF is beginning to admit that scheduling the competition in the middle of the rainy season may not necessarily be a bright idea.
With the 2022 World Cup billed for November 21 to December 18, 2022, it is impossible to push back the AFCON to January-February 2023. Obviously, players will not be able to participate in two major tournaments in the space of a few weeks.
The most likely alternative appears to be to postpone the AFCON to January-February 2024. That is similar to the previous edition, AFCON 2021, in Cameroon, which kicked off earlier this year after the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted initial plans.
The last edition of the tournament was held in January this year in Cameroon and the highest-ranked African side, the Teranga Lions of Senegal won the edition, for the first time in their history.
