CAF picks new date for AFCON 2021 tournament

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has agreed on January 9, 2022, as the start date for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon. 

This year’s tournament was rescheduled for 2022 following interference with the international football calendar due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The final match of the tournament is expected to be played on February 6, 2022.

An Executive Committee of CAF meeting on Wednesday chaired by new CAF President, Patrice Motsepe unanimously approved the dates.

“The Executive Committee unanimously approved the proposed dates for the organization of the draw (June 25, 2021) and the Total Africa Cup of Nations 2021 Cameroon final tournament (January 9 to February 6, 2022),” a statement on CAF’s official website read.

Meanwhile, the draw for the groups at the competition has been slated for June 25, 2021.

Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Comoros, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Tunisia and Zimbabwe have qualified with one more spot to be fielded by Benin and Sierra Leone.

The game between Sierra Leone and Benin had to be postponed due to COVID-19 positive cases. The match has been scheduled for the next international break which is between May 31 to June 15.