AFCON to go ahead despite European clubs’ threats

THE Confederation of African Football, have stood up to European clubs, which have threatened to withhold players in their books from the African Cup of Nations.

The European Clubs Association (ECA), on Wednesday, threatened to withdraw their players from the African Cup of Nations, which is scheduled to begin in Cameroon next month.

In a letter to CAF, through FIFA, the ECA raised their concerns about letting their players leave for international duty during this time of widespread of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 and also the peak of their various league and cup competitions.

In a letter to the Deputy General Secretary of FIFA — Mattias Grafstrom — the ECA expressed its concerns over the rising cases of the new variant of coronavirus, Omicron, and travel restrictions put in place by government authorities.

The tournament was originally due to be played in June and July 2020 but was moved to January and February 2021 following climate concerns in Cameroon.

The competition was also shifted again to January 2022 due to the menace of the Covid-19 pandemic. And now, the ECA is saying that it should be postponed again for the same reasons.

The ECA said they fear for the players’ well-being, clubs being without key players for January and February, and whether all players will return “in a timely fashion.”

The association told CAF they have the right to withhold their players from international duty to protect them.

The ECA said: “It is the obligation of each National Association that wishes to call a player for national team duty to establish to the satisfaction of the respective clubs that all application medical protocols have been implemented and will be enforced.

“As we all know and as is public information, various National Associations have recently failed to properly implement protocols oftentimes with worrying degrees of negligence.

“As far as we are aware, CAF has not yet made available a suitable medical and operational protocol for the AFCON tournament.”

The ECA raising their issue with CAF when the tournament is played resurrects a longstanding conflict between Europe’s and Africa’s match scheduling. They state that because the two periods collide “there cannot be mandatory release” of players for international duty.

They classified their worries into three principles which are:

The obligation for each national association that wishes to call a player for national team duty to establish, to the satisfaction of the respective clubs, that all applicable medical protocols have been implemented and enforced.

Secondly, there cannot be mandatory release in circumstances where the release period’s duration would necessitate players missing official club matches.

Lastly, the unavailability of players for club activities cannot extend beyond the agreed release periods.

The European clubs claim CAF are yet to meet the principles which could restrict them from releasing their players this month.

“Against this background, please note that, at its meeting of December 2021, the ECA Executive Board unanimously re-confirmed its position that the three principles referred to above must be strictly respected and, should this not be the case, that players not be released for national team duty,” read a part of ECA’s letter.

“At present, these three principles are at risk of not being respected in connection with the upcoming January releases.

“With regards to applicable protocols, as far as we are aware, CAF has not yet made available a suitable medical and operational protocol for the AFCON tournament, in the absence of which clubs will not be able to release players for the tournament.

“For certain clubs expected to release players, including English and French club, domestic competition matches are due to take place up until early January and hence, the overlap of the 2022 AFCON release dates (with call ups from 27th of December) are unmanageable.”

Reacting to ECA’s threat, CAF said the competition will go ahead as scheduled.

According to Head, Media Relations and Operations, Luxolo September, rumours of the cancellation of the competition is fake.

Supporting September’s claims, CAF General Secretary, Veron Mosengo-Omba, said the confederation is doing everything possible to ensure participants’ safety.

Mosengo-Omba, who held meetings with Cameroon’s Sports Minister, Professor Narcisse Mouelle Kombi and Public Health Minister, Manaouda Malachie, on Tuesday, said: “The meetings were important in getting a level of understanding on the state of readiness in Cameroon.

“There is a lot of work that is being done. We have to continue with the same momentum. We cannot rest. We have to work around the clock.

“I’m not resting, the LOC cannot rest. CAF cannot rest. Everyone must join the efforts. We want to see a great TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations here in Cameroon in January next year.

“Together with the Minister of Sport, we discussed all the pending issues and the way forward.”

Mosengo-Omba also spent several hours at Olembe Stadium where he met the team working at the stadium.

For the first time in the history of AFCON preparations and, to give the best possible support to the hosts, CAF opened an office in Yaoundé, Cameroon that was liaising directly with the LOC.

“We have put the best support system for this competition. For the last few months, our office in Cairo and also the office in Yaoundé has been working closely with the Cameroon government and the LOC in ensuring that we create the best possible conditions for the visitors. We are working on a number of aspects now including ensuring the movement of the 24 participating teams, the commercial partners and other stakeholders coming to Cameroon,” Mosengo-Omba said.

While he noted some areas that still need attention ahead of the opening week of the competition, the CAF General Secretary remains optimistic.

Mosengo-Omba said: “There is a lot of progress in most operational matters and there is work that is currently being done day and night by the host nation, Cameroon to ensure that all the facilities for the teams are ready. We know of the massive effort that everyone is putting as part of the final touches on the ground. We see this progress, we acknowledge this progress.”

CAF has seen a lot of interest from media organisations globally. So far, CAF has received 2110 media applications from 59 countries – once again reaffirming the status of the tournament and its global appeal.

Meanwhile, the newly-elected president of the Cameroonian Football Federation (Fecafoot), Samuel Eto’o, dismissed reports that the AFCON finals might be postponed after meeting with the country’s Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Mouelle Kombi on Wednesday.

Eto’o confirmed that preparations are in full gear for the tournament that will begin on January 9.

“It was great meeting with Professor Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, Minister of Sports & Physical Education as the preparations for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations intensify,” he wrote on Instagram.

“With just 24 days to go until we host Afcon here in Cameroon, collaboration is key.”

AFP contacted a senior official of Fecafoot who dismissed reports that the competition may be called off as ”fake news”. — Guardian Nigeria/Goal.com/Sports Reporter.