THE Confederation of African Football (Caf) has confirmed that the Africa Cup of Nations will now be held in odd- numbered years. A statement on the Caf website says the switch will take place from 2013. The decision was rubber-stamped at a CAF executive committee meeting at its headquarters in Cairo on Saturday.
THE Confederation of African Football (Caf) has confirmed that the Africa Cup of Nations will now be held in odd- numbered years.
A statement on the Caf website says the switch will take place from 2013. The decision was rubber-stamped at a CAF executive committee meeting at its headquarters in Cairo on Saturday.
The change means that two tournaments will be staged within a year with Gabon and Equatorial Guinea co-hosting one in 2012 and Libya 12 months later.
The decision means the Nations Cup will no longer be held in the same year as the World Cup, one of the reasons given for the poor performance of African teams at the world event.
The move has been warmly welcomed by Ferwafa’s CEO Jules Kalisa."Players will now have ample time to recuperate before the World Cup,” he said.
Caf also announced that the Championship of African Nations (CHAN) will now be held in even-numbered years, starting with Libya in 2014.
The Nations Cup has been played in an even year since 1968, although the very first competition in Sudan took place in 1957.
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