Tag Archives: Nigeria

The affective politics of AFCON

“The dust is settling on the training pitches and stadiums of the 2023 edition of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON), as Morocco gears up to host the next tournament in 2025. To be sure, it was a spectacular AFCON. Not only did the host nation’s team make quite the comeback—deemed by some to be a resurrection—but the performance of other teams as well, which sent some of the most revered giants of African football home earlier than expected, was nothing short of astounding. This AFCON absolutely delivered on plot twists. It also delivered on fun and banter or, to put it more succinctly in Nouchi, an Abidjan urban vernacular, on enjaillement. …”
Africa Is a Country

Ivory Coast are AFCON champions: From sacking manager to lifting trophy, this is their story

“Children were dancing on the pitch, kissing the turf and throwing confetti in the air while a security guard chased after them. Three hours after Ivory Coast beat Nigeria 2-1 to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) for the third time, hundreds of people were still inside the Alassane Ouattara Stadium. Volunteers wanted to go home, but supporters wanted to cling to this magical moment for as long as possible. They gatecrashed the mixed zone, where players speak to reporters, and grabbed selfies with Max Gradel or asked him to sign their shirts. Sebastien Haller and Odilon Kossounou flashed their medals for the cameras. Oumar Diakite, Christian Kouame and Jean-Philippe Krasso walked through with a speaker blasting music. The group of children running around the centre circle briefly disappeared to follow the team bus but came charging back minutes later. …”
The Athletic
GuardianIvory Coast’s Afcon win shows there’s no blueprint for tournament success – Jonathan Wilson
W – 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
The Athletic: AFCON final: Haller’s fairytale finish seals glory as Nigeria and Osimhen fall short
YouTube: HIGHLIGHTS | Nigeria 🆚 Côte d’Ivoire

Nigeria vs Ivory Coast: Star men, key battles and how the AFCON final will be won and lost

“This year’s Africa Cup of Nations has been packed with incredible nail-biting drama, and we now have a showpiece final ahead of us. Nigeria, who are hoping to win the competition for a fourth time, face host nation and two-time winners Ivory Coast in the deciding game on Sunday night. These two sides already met in the group stage, with Nigeria winning 1-0, and have been on completely different journeys to reach the final. …”
The Athletic
The Athletic: The story of Amad Diallo – and the man accused of trafficking him to Europe
Africa Is a Country: Palestine at AFCON
BBC – Afcon 2023: Kolo Toure hopes Ivory Coast beat Nigeria in final to spark party

Traders at Adjame market
AFCON and juju – an attempt to explain African football and superstition. “Football – wherever it is played in the world – carries a streak of chaos. … Fans can shrug off freak results. But a string of bizarre occurrences often leads to suggestions of something else. At AFCON, that means talk of juju. It is a nebulous and catch-all term, trying to cover an array of practices that do not fit anything found in major organised religions. Be it called juju, voodoo, black magic, muti, otumokpo or something else; there is the idea that AFCON sees players, fans, and even coaches turn to alternate forces to affect games. …”
The Athletic: AFCON and juju – an attempt to explain African football and superstition
BBC – Afcon 2023: Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong dreams of lifting trophy (Video)
BBC – Afcon 2023: Ivory Coast ‘spirit’ praised after rollercoaster run to final (Video)

A voodoo priest in Benin tries to bring luck to their team at Afcon in 2019.

Ivory Coast, at long last, look like a force to be reckoned with again

“The Alassane Ouattara Stadium is located in Ebimpe, a 50-minute drive north from the main area of Abidjan. When you make the return journey late at night, you pass a bridge that crosses the Ebrie Lagoon, which is lit up in green, orange and white to represent the Ivory Coast’s flag. On Wednesday, it provided a serene and subdued scene compared to the madness that had taken place in Ebimpe a few hours before. Smoke from green and orange flares swirled up into the sky. Emerse Fae leapt around on the touchline, unable to contain his happiness. Sebastien Haller thumped his chest while home fans waved their hands up and down. Outside the ground, police sirens were blaring as they tried to safely control thousands of people partying. It tells you everything that you need to know about this weird and wonderful tournament that, despite sacking their head coach Jean-Louis Gasset after the group stages and being on the brink of elimination multiple times, hosts Ivory Coast will face Nigeria in the Africa Cup of Nations final. …”
The Athletic (Video)
Guardian – Hope and miracles: Afcon’s unlikely semi-finalists carry weight of history – Jonathan Wilson
Africa Is a Country: On eagle’s wings
The Athletic – Haji Wright on his ‘crazy’ World Cup goal: ‘I was like, “OK, I’ll take it!”’
The Athletic – Watching Nigeria make AFCON final with the fans: “My heart can’t take this – I’m going to throw up, bro”
***NY Times: Playing Soccer in $1.50 Sandals That Even Gucci Wants to Copy
BBC – Afcon 2023: Ivory Coast ‘spirit’ praised after rollercoaster run to final

AFCON finally has African managers. But the rest of the world has not caught up

Gasset was dismissed after Ivory Coast’s final group game
“Somebody had to pay the price for the Ivory Coast’s horrendous performance in the group stage of this Africa Cup of Nations. The hosts beat Guinea-Bissau 2-0 in their opening game, but then lost 1-0 to Nigeria and imploded against Equatorial Guinea. The Ivorians were thrashed 4-0 in the latter match and manager Jean-Louis Gasset was sacked afterwards, even though they ended up progressing to the round of 16 as one of the best third-placed sides and are now in the quarter-finals having beaten holders Senegal in a penalty shootout under interim boss Emerse Fae. …”
The Athletic

Lookman knocks Angola out in quarter-finals as Nigeria stick to Afcon script

“The greatest shock of all, perhaps, is when there is no shock. In a Cup of Nations in which reputation and pre-tournament billing has meant nothing, there was at last a game that went the way that might have been expected, as Ademola Lookman’s first-half goal and a fourth clean sheet in a row carried Nigeria to the last four of the Cup of Nations for the 16th time. …”
Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

The ‘magic’ of the beautiful game

“‘Magic,’ ‘sorcery,’ and ‘witchcraft’ come up over and over again in discussions about football in Africa. They are allegedly widespread in the African game and make for intriguing and controversial debates. In the ongoing African Cup of Nations, religion has made an appearance: a Ghanaian Christian prophet predicted a player’s demise, and the Egyptian Football Association sacrificed a cow to bring luck to the national team. The prophecy did not come to pass and Egypt was knocked out by the DR Congo. This might be a good moment to reassess debates about religion and spirituality in African football and find better ways to think about them. One perspective is that football ‘sorcery’ is a harmless practice that adds color and uniqueness to the African game and aids in players’ psychological preparation. However, debates about the morality and appropriateness of football ‘magic’ are highly charged. …”
Africa Is a Country

From chaos to champions? Don’t rule it out in Ivory Coast’s madcap Afcon

An Ivory Coast supporter celebrates Monday’s victory over Senegal on a street in the northern city of Korhogo
“The fact that Ivory Coast hired a veteran French coach – Jean‑Louis Gasset – with no experience in African football before the Africa Cup of Nations, only to sack him after their miserable performance in the group stages and replace him with a former international player but novice manager, Emerse Faé, for their last‑16 game against Senegal speaks to the cocktail of incompetence and chaos that is Ivorian football. Not even the pulsating, national morale-boosting penalty‑shootout win against Senegal on Monday, which sent the streets of Ivory Coast’s capital Yamoussoukro into a frenzy of jubilation into the early hours of Tuesday, can mask this fact. …”
Guardian
South Africa knock World Cup semi-finalists Morocco out of Africa Cup of Nations

A Senegal supporter at the Charles Konan Banny Stadium
Ivory Coast’s redemption arc: AFCON hosts go from despair to delirium “Senegal’s supporters banged their drums with such ferocious intensity that it felt like they were rallying troops — maybe that was their intention. Scattered around the Charles Konan Banny Stadium in Yamoussoukro, in between the thousands of people who swayed their hips and danced for hours, were some supporters wearing grisly lion masks. When Habibou Diallo scored from Sadio Mane’s cross after three minutes, they let off a bright red flare. Ivory Coast boss Emerse Fae, in his first game as a senior head coach, must have wondered if he had accidentally stumbled upon the entrance to Mordor. …”
The Athletic (Video)
Guardian – Afcon: Hakimi misses penalty and Amrabat sent off as South Africa stun Morocco
Africa Is a Country: Abidjan is orange

Why you should be watching the Africa Cup of Nations

“There’s just something about international football and if you haven’t been watching this year’s Africa Cup of Nations, then, frankly, where have you been? This year’s tournament, called AFCON 2023 because it was originally planned to be held last summer, has had it all so far, with spectacular goals and performances heaped among a healthy dose of drama on and off the pitch. From heavyweights Ghana and Algeria crashing out to underdogs Equatorial Guinea and Cape Verde upsetting the odds, there has been something for everyone — and that’s before we even get to hosts Ivory Coast sacking their head coach mid-tournament. Here, a selection of writers from The Athletic reflect on their favourite moments of AFCON 2023 and what they’re looking forward to in the knockout stages. …”
The Athletic

AFCON 2023 round of 16: When do the knockout stages begin? Who plays who?

“It’s business time in the Africa Cup of Nations. The group stage is done and dusted, and from Saturday, January 27 until Tuesday, January 30, the 16 remaining teams will duke it out to reach the quarter-finals as they tussle to be crowned kings of the continent. Reigning champions Senegal led the way by winning three games from three in the group stage but some of their fancied rivals have struggled to replicate the same level of success, with the likes of Egypt, Cameroon (and hosts Ivory Coast) qualifying for the knockout rounds by the skin of their teeth. Meanwhile, for as much as Equatorial Guinea and Cape Verde have impressed by sauntering to qualification, Ghana and Algeria are among the heavy-hitters that have already returned home with their tails between their legs. Here, The Athletic runs through the last-16 showdowns on the horizon. Who faces who, where are the games and when will the first knockout matches of AFCON 2023 take place. …”
The Athletic (Video)
Africa Is a Country: Explaining Afcon upsets
Guardian: How Zambia’s Patson Daka stayed focused to write history at Afcon

AFCON 2023 permutations: How Ghana, Ivory Coast and other teams can still reach knockout stage Ivory Coast

“The Africa Cup of Nations has been every bit as exciting as it promised to be. Equatorial Guinea, a nation with 1.6million inhabitants, thrashed hosts Ivory Coast 4-0 on Monday. Cape Verde, an archipelago of 10 small volcanic islands off the coast of west Africa, threw up the tournament’s first upset on the second day, beating four-time winners Ghana 2-1. And we have not even reached the knockout stage yet. …”
The Athletic

AFCON is a playlist

“Music and African football have always been inextricably linked. Think of some of Africa’s most iconic moments in football: Roger Milla and his dance at the corner flag, Siphiwe Tshabalala and Bafana Bafana on the half-turn in synchronized rhythm, and Robert Kidiaba bum-bouncing after a goal. It’s not just the players that punctuate the rhythm of play with dance, at times the terraces at Cup of Nations tournaments can turn into impromptu flash mobs. With just a few days to go before we kick off the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, we’ve put together our official Africa Is A Country playlist, exploring some of the most iconic songs in African football and explaining why they mean so much to so many on the continent. …”
Africa Is A Country (Video)

The Radar – The Athletic’s scouting guide to the Africa Cup of Nations

“Welcome to The Radar — Africa Cup of Nations edition. What you are about to read is the result of a lot of hard work from our team of writers, data analysts and designers, who have combined to bring you a guide to the 24 players we think you should pay particularly close attention to at the 2023 (yes, it’s being held in 2024) Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast, starting on January 13 and finishing on February 11. Below, you will find some of the tournament’s best and most exciting players split into three categories. There are eight superstars — globally renowned players from some of the biggest African footballing nations, all of whom have the ability and experience to dominate the upcoming tournament. …”
The Athletic

Will an African nation win the World Cup in the next decade?
“With Morocco’s performance at the last World Cup, do you see an African nation winning the tournament in the next decade? Honestly, no. The World Cup is a slightly odd tournament in that it’s pretty much never had a shock winner – maybe West Germany in 1954, but their subsequent performances have diminished what a surprise that felt at the time. Perhaps all that means is that we’re due a shock but there seems to be something about the magnitude of the occasion in the latter stages of the competition that ultimately benefits the elite. …”
Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

AFCON: Your guide to the games, the stars and the storylines
“The 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations starts on Saturday, with hosts Ivory Coast taking on Guinea-Bissau. The biennial competition, which first took place in 1957, sees 24 teams battle it out to be crowned Africa’s champions. At the last AFCON, Senegal beat Egypt on penalties to win the tournament for the first time. …”
The Athletic

The footballers who escaped one of the most dangerous countries on Earth
“David is an Eritrean footballer, a refugee who thinks government agents are still watching him even though he fled the country a long time ago and is now thousands of miles away. Though he has claimed asylum abroad, his fears mean that he often sleeps with a chair pressed against the door of his bedroom. Sometimes he will have nightmares about a group of men armed with weapons bursting in and taking him away. …”
The Athletic

The politics of hosting AFCON

“A decade later, in January 2024, Ivorians will finally welcome the continent and the world to the next AFCON. Economic and sporting realities are making it harder for sporting tournaments to find hosts. In the past, hosting gigs were keenly sought after and contested by different countries. The appeal of welcoming thousands of visitors and positively impacting economic and tourist activities was usually viewed positively while winning bids was always a good tonic for political leaders. Yet, expansion means growing tournament costs and the need to maximize economic output, while mitigating CAF’s financial difficulties is making it harder to find hosts. This trend might impact AFCON, the continent’s premier football competition. …”
Africa Is a Country
Africa Is a Country: Who are you rooting for – Laurent Dubois

Are the 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers a new era for African Football?

Spain-Morocco match, Group B, 2018 FIFA World Cup.
“This week on the African Five-a-side podcast, we have a two editions of the African Football Roundup, adding a special extra episode as we preview the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in Africa and recap the handful of matches that have already been played. Matchday 1 will resume next week! Throughout the history of the FIFA World Cup, Africa has often found itself underrepresented. In 1966, the African continent boycotted the World Cup in England to send a message to FIFA that it demanded a guaranteed place at the tournament, which it subsequently secured in 1970. …”
Africa Is a Country (Audio)

Africa Super League: Can new competition improve club game on continent?

“Morocco may well have broken barriers for African football with the country’s historic run to the World Cup semi-finals, but the club game on the continent is still lagging well behind the standards in Europe. As such, Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Patrice Motsepe is hoping the launch of the Africa Super League next year will change that. The South African described the new competition as “one of the most exciting developments in the history of African football” when he unveiled the latest plans in Tanzania in August. …”
BBC

Africa’s World Cup: how a continent that usually underperforms finally got it rig

“After the first round of games at the World Cup, an all too familiar script looked to be playing out for African football fans. Five games played, three losses, two draws and only Ghana putting the ball in the back of the net in a defeat by Portugal. Another disappointing tournament appeared to be looming for the continent that Brazil soccer great and three-time winner Pelé once declared would ‘win the World Cup before the year 2000.’ … However, as Qatar 2022 draws to a close, the outlook looks very different. Every single team from the continent went on to win a game in its group for the first time in history, two teams made it out of the group stages – a joint record – and Morocco will become the first African team to play in a World Cup semifinal. …”
CNN

The Radar – The Athletic’s 2022 World Cup scouting guide

“Welcome to The Radar — the World Cup edition. Last year, for Euro 2020, we profiled 60 players that people were talking about — or would be by the end of the competition. Thirty-four of those players have since moved club. More teams means more players, so for the World Cup we’ve upped that to 100. The result is below, a carefully crafted guide to some of the best footballers on show in Qatar listed alphabetically by country — the heavyweight names, the rising stars and the under-the-radar players who could be coming to an elite club near you. …”
The Athletic

World Cup 2022 Groups: The Predictions

“The 2022 World Cup is finally here, with the tournament in Qatar being the first held in the months of November and December since the first World Cup finals in 1930. The 22nd men’s FIFA World Cup tournament will see 32 teams battle it out in the group stage after qualifying via five different regions – Asia, Africa, South America, North America/Central America and Europe (no nation from Oceania qualified). From there, 16 will make it through to the knockout stages. …”
The Analyst

World Cup provisional squads explained: What are the rules and will they be made public?

“A month from today, it all begins. The World Cup in Qatar looms ever larger on the horizon and the countdown is on to the first of 64 games that will crown a winner at the Lusail Stadium on Sunday, December 18. Doubts persist over the suitability of Qatar to host this World Cup, as well as its readiness to welcome more than one million visitors, but the biggest names in football are about to descend on a tiny Gulf nation that’s half the size of Wales and roughly as big as the US state of Connecticut. …”
The Athletic
The Analyst: World Cup 2022 Guide to Each Group

World Cup 2022 news round-up: Nkunku and Lewandowski shine as Argentina put faith in Scaloni

“Club football is back and with fewer than 50 days for players to find form and fitness before the World Cup kicks off on November 20, Poland’s Robert Lewandowski, Leandro Trossard of Belgium and USA forward Ricardo Pepi laid down a marker at the weekend. Off the pitch, coaches are already being rewarded before the tournament kicks off with Wales extending Rob Page’s contract and Argentina set to keep Lionel Scaloni as head coach until the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico. …”
The Athletic

World Cup health check: The issue each country must address before Qatar

“The September international break is normally relatively relaxed — a chance to tweak tactics and focus on formations. Not this time. For almost all 32 competing nations, this is the final set of international fixtures before the World Cup begins in Qatar on November 20. So that you can go into the break feeling prepared, The Athletic has identified one issue every team need to try to fix this break…”
The Athletic (Video)

More than a national pastime

“Recent contests over the presidency of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) have been keenly contested, with good reason. Nigeria’s size and football pedigree (the Nigerian men’s national team has qualified for the World Cup six times and won the African Cup of Nations three times) mean occupants of the NFF presidency have frequently used this position as a launch pad for more senior positions in both the continental (CAF) and global (FIFA) football governing bodies. Amaju Pinnick, the current president, is no exception. …”
Africa Is a Country

Tallying the Costs, Shirts and All, of Missing the World Cup

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“In those initial moments of agony in March after Nigeria was eliminated from qualification for this year’s World Cup, the most immediate thoughts of Amaju Pinnick, the president of Nigeria’s soccer federation, were of the disappointment being felt by his 200 million countrymen in Africa’s most populous nation. He needed only to look down on the scenes unfolding inside Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja, Nigeria, to see what it meant. Thousands of angry supporters had poured onto the field after the final whistle to vent their anger, knocking over the advertising boards, chasing the players from the field and clashing with security officers. …”
NY Times

Nigeria’s troubles are reflected in its football

29 March 2022: Angry Nigerian football fans invade the pitch after the Super Eagles’ loss to Ghana at the National Stadium in Abuja, Nigeria.
“The ugly reaction to Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the Fifa World Cup highlighted frustrations of the nation that go beyond the disappointment of losing a football match. The response to their elimination by West African arch-rivals Ghana was immediate as home fans at Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja invaded the pitch at fulltime. In a bid to create as hostile and intimidating an atmosphere as possible for Ghana, tens of thousands of tickets had been given out free. …”
New Frame

The World Cup Draw Is Friday. Here’s How It Works.

“The World Cup field is almost complete. On Friday, soccer teams will learn the answer to the critical question they and their fans want to know: Who will they play when the tournament opens in November in Qatar? The World Cup draw — part gala, part pep rally, part math seminar — will deliver intriguing clashes of styles, testy political collisions and, if past events are any guide, a few uncomfortable moments. But given the stakes of the draw, it is also one of the biggest events on the global sports calendar. Here is a look at how it works. …”
NY Times
NY Times: Who Has Qualified for the 2022 World Cup? (Video)
NY Times: Your World Cup Questions, Answered
The Athletic – 2022 World Cup odds: France, Brazil are co-favorites ahead of the draw; England, Spain right behind

World Cup 2022: Algeria avenge Nations Cup failure in Cameroon

Islam Slimani celebrates his crucial goal in Douala where Algeria took a 1-0 first-leg lead
“Algeria inflicted a rare home defeat on Cameroon as the 2019 African champions took a crucial 1-0 lead from the first leg of their 2022 World Cup play-off. Playing in Douala, where Cameroon have been unbeaten since losing a Nations Cup qualifier in 2000, veteran Islam Slimani’s winner handed Algeria coach Djamel Belmadi the perfect 46th birthday present. Five minutes before the break, the former Leicester City striker rose to meet Youcef Belaili’s free-kick and power a header past Ajax goalkeeper Andrè Onana….”
BBC

There’s a metaphor in there somewhere

“There is a metaphor somewhere in Senegal’s first African Cup of Nations (Afcon) championship in its history. The 2021 Afcon, played last month and this week because of a postponement from last summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ended Sunday with Sadio Mane, the Liverpool star, scoring the decisive penalty in the final. With that, a one-month-long festival of football by Africa’s men’s national teams and everything else that surrounded it came to an end. Most of the players now return to their clubs, where some of them are stars, mostly in Europe. There’s a metaphor in that too. …”
Africa Is a Country

Why Algeria imploded at the Afcon

20 January 2022: A dejected Youcef Belaïli of Algeria during the Africa Cup of Nations match against Ivory Coast at Japoma Stadium in Douala, Cameroon.
“If anyone ever doubted the power of a football match result, just show them Algeria’s 270 minutes in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) that led to people completely second-guessing the success of The Fennecs. Prior to the tournament, Algeria had a 35-match unbeaten run, easily disposing of Ghana in a pre-tournament friendly. They were justifiably dubbed favourites alongside hosts Cameroon as well as Morocco and Senegal, yet they were sent packing after just three group-stage matches. It is a serious blow considering that, in the new 24-team Afcon format, four of the best third-placed teams also qualify for the knockout stage. …”
New Frame

Africa Cup of Nations review: sorrow, anger and Mané’s redemption

“Our writers relive their highs and lows of a tournament completely overshadowed by the Olembe Stadium tragedy. … This Cup of Nations was played under a shadow from the moment eight supporters died outside Olembe Stadium a fortnight ago. There is no excusing what happened at a venue surrounded by vast spaces and the depressing sense remains that its causes will be swept under the carpet. After driving back to Yaoundé the following day and speaking with Romaric, who had been in the ground and encountered people who had been caught up in the crush as he left, the horror of what had occurred started to become clear. A subsequent visit to the emergency hospital brought some harrowing testimonies; these are, sadly, the words and images that linger. …”
Guardian
The Athletic – Cox: Italy-esque Senegal shackled Egypt with five men – they were deserved winners (Audio)
****An African Cup of Nations Primer
NY Times – Africa Cup of Nations: Soccer Tournament Offers Joy Amid Coups and Covid
AFCON 2021: The Review
W – 2021 Africa Cup of Nations
YouTube: Senegal vs Egypt | AFCON 2021 FINAL HIGHLIGHTS | 02/06/2022, Cameroon vs Egypt – CAF African Cup of Nations 2022 2:10:39

Fans from Burkina Faso, which recently underwent a coup, rehearsed their dances and drumming before Wednesday’s semifinal.

Predicting the AFCON 2021 Quarter-finals

“Senegal and Cameroon – they’ve each got about a 75% chance of reaching the AFCON 2021 semi-finals with dream quarter-final draws, but that’s about where the similarities end. We’ll start this off with one of those teams and end with the other while weaving through the remaining six sides with key numbers for each. A disclaimer before reading on: Teams playing attacking football (looking at you, Morocco) will be handsomely rewarded with more words. …”
The Analyst

Is that a “juju” man on Malawi’s bench?

“In Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa and much of southern Africa, the rains which start falling in November, the onset of summer, are a welcome respite after the preceding dry, winter months. However welcome the rains are, the relief is sometimes tinged with a measure of trepidation – especially among some rural communities. After all, rains come with lightning and thunder. It so happens that our region receives a disproportionate amount of lightning compared to the rest of the world. One reason for the phenomenon is the minerals extant in the rocks beneath us that draw the electricity from the sky. Nonsense, some will say – the real reason is African metaphysics. …”
New Frame

Africa Cup of Nations: A football celebration overshadowed by tragedy Published

Abandoned shoes were the only evidence that there had been a problem before the match.
“In our series of letters from African writers, Algerian-Canadian football journalist Maher Mezahi, who is in Cameroon to cover the Africa Cup of Nations, reflects on how the recent deaths of fans at a stadium has left him with mixed feelings about the tournament. …”
BBC (Video)

Comoros, Cameroon and the curious tale of no goalkeepers

Injured goalkeeper Salim Ben Boina sums up the mood in the Comoros camp.
“While the fairytale story of Comoros’s journey to the knockout stages of this year’s Africa Cup of Nations will some day make an inspirational feel-good movie, one suspects Disney’s scriptwriters will have to leave out some of the finer details on the grounds that audiences may find them just a little bit too far-fetched. Hailing from a financially impoverished archipelago with a population of less than one million people located off the east coast of the continent, Les Coelacantes pulled off something of a miracle in merely qualifying for Afcon but certainly weren’t expected to make it this far. …”
Guardian

The Most Exciting Sporting Event in the World Is Happening Right Now

“In March 1957, Ghana cast off British colonialism and became the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to achieve political self-rule. At its independence celebrations, the new prime minister, Kwame Nkrumah, offered a hopeful message: ‘We are going to create our own African personality and identity. It is the only way we can show the world that we are ready for our own battles.’ I was remembering that line last week as I watched the early matches of the Africa Cup of Nations, a tournament of soccer teams representing 24 countries from across the continent. This year’s competition is being hosted by Cameroon; it began on Jan. 9 and runs until Feb. 6. …”
NY Times

Africa Cup of Nations: Pépé caps Ivory Coast win to send dismal Algeria home

“Ivory Coast thumped Algeria 3-1 to send the defending champions crashing out of the Africa Cup of Nations finals following a disastrous Group E campaign. Nicolas Pépé’s fine solo goal early in the second half put the game out of sight, the Arsenal winger advancing into the penalty area and curling the ball into the far corner with his left foot. The Elephants led 2-0 at half-time thanks to Franck Kessié’s opener and an Ibrahim Sangaré header from Serge Aurier’s free-kick. …”
Guardian
Guardian: Africa Cup of Nations Group A,B,C,D,E,F

AFCON 2021: The Stats So Far No.2

“Each team have played two games at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations – some have already qualified for the last 16, some have very little hope of going any further. What have we learnt from the opening two matchdays so far? …”
The Analyst

AFCON is decolonization

“The 33rd edition of the African Cup of Nations began today, Sunday, 9 January, in Cameroon. AIAC founder and editor Sean Jacobs joins Will to talk about the history of the tournament, its contemporary politics, and its relationship to the hegemony of European football. The most important question of all, of course, is who will win this year’s showpiece? Listen below for some predictions.”
Africa Is a Country 1:11:15 (Audio)

AFCON 2021 guide: The storylines, the underdogs and the games you won’t want to miss

“The latest Africa Cup of Nations is just around the corner. It’s been a long road to get here for a competition that has been moved around the calendar multiple times and, in the style of Euro 2020 last summer has the ‘wrong’ year in its official title, but 24 teams are now finally set to duke it out in Cameroon to become the next champions of Africa, with the tournament getting underway on Sunday, and finishing on Sunday, February 6. Here’s everything you need to know. …”
The Athletic (Audio)
NY Times: The Joy in Embracing the Unknown (Video)
New Frame: Behind concerns over Afcon is a culture of disdain
Predicting the Africa Cup of Nations 2021 Winner
GOAL – Afcon 2021 predictions: The contenders and the pretenders (Video)

Afcon 2021: Everything you need to know about tournament in Cameroon

“First scheduled to start in June 2021 but subsequently brought forward to January last year to avoid Cameroon’s rainy season, the tournament has been delayed to 2022 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has faced criticism over the timing of its continental showpiece, and last month had to address rumours the tournament would be further delayed or moved following the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. Former Arsenal and England striker Ian Wright said some of the negative media coverage has been ‘disrespectful’ and ‘tinged with racism’. …”
BBC (Video)

Africa Cup of Nations: Which Premier League players are going?

Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah, Edouard Mendy, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Maxwel Cornet and more will be gone for several weeks
“The Africa Cup of Nations begins next month, with over 30 Premier League players set to miss several weeks of the season as they head to Cameroon. Arsenal, Leicester City and Watford are each set to lose a league-high four players. Liverpool will lose three – including forwards Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane – as will Crystal Palace. Chelsea are going to be without keeper Edouard Mendy, who could miss the Fifa Club World Cup and league games against Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham, among others. …”
BBC

Aubameyang to Zaha: how Africa Cup of Nations will hit Premier League

“Only four top-flight clubs are in line to be unaffected by tournament that kicks off in Cameroon on 9 January. … Jürgen Klopp is not the only Premier League manager who will have Afcon on his mind over the coming weeks. With the delayed 33rd edition of the continental showpiece due to begin in Cameroon on 9 January, planning for the absence of up to 40 players from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Wilfried Zaha during one of the most intense periods of the domestic season will present a major headache for several. Much to the annoyance of Klopp and European club managers, the tournament was switched back to its usual mid-season slot after the 2019 Cup of Nations in Egypt was held for the first time during the European summer, because June and July are part of the rainy season in Cameroon. …”
Guardian
W – 2022 African Nations Championship
YouTube: AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS 2022 DRAW RESULT

World Cup 2022: ranking the top 10 contenders a year before Qatar

“With just over a year to go until the World Cup kicks off, 12 teams have qualified alongside hosts Qatar. All four semi-finalists from 2018 have sealed their spots and are joined by former world champions Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Spain, while recent European champions Portugal and Italy still have more to do. With most of the big hitters now able to prepare for the tournament, we assess where they stand as the countdown to Qatar begins. …”
Guardian
The Athletic: CONCACAF World Cup qualifying: Where USMNT, Canada, Mexico and Panama stand with six matches left
World Cup 2022 Power Rankings: France & England the early favourites as Portugal & Italy falter

World Cup 2018 Best XI: France’s Champions Lead the Top Players in Russia

“After 64 games and more drama than any World Cup in at least 20 years, there’s one piece of business left to do: Pick a team of the tournament. It’s been picked as a team that might function together rather than just the 11 best players, and to avoid the temptation of packing it with France’s champions, a limit of four players per country has been self-imposed. In a 4-3-3 formation fit for the world stage, here is our 2018 World Cup Best XI.” SI – Jonathan Wilson

For all the ills of the world, World Cup 2018 showed that a bit of football done right can make the planet smile

“Monday morning dawns with a grim and crushing inevitability. Unless you’re peeling yourself off a Paris pavement, or drowning your sorrows in a Dubrovnik dive bar, the 2018 World Cup is over. As a month of sporting hedonism slips from present tense to past, real life and its hard borders re-sharpen their focus, bringing with them a cruel reckoning. It was only football, after all. It felt like more than that when Kylian Mbappe was burning through opposition defenders, or Lionel Messi was fighting back the tide, or Russia and South Korea were pulling off the unfeasible, or when England’s town squares throbbed with rasping songs and nervous tension and the prickly spines of a faint dream. But no: ultimately, it was only football, no more and no less.” Independent

World Cup 2018 goal celebrations: A statistical analysis of unbridled joy

“How would you celebrate if you scored at a World Cup? A jig by the corner flag, an emphatic sprint, jump and punch of the air, an emotional tussle with the goalnet, or just run as fast and far as you can until someone finally, gleefully leaps on you? Whether you’re a Milla, a Josimar or a Tardelli kind of guy, there are plenty of ways with which to physically revel in what, for most players, is the once-or-twice-in-a-lifetime act of scoring on the world’s biggest stage. Goal celebrations – often just as complex, slow-motion-worthy and memorable as the goals themselves – are an art form. But, just like everything else, they’re moulded by cultural trends, context and just pure momentary instinct.” Telegraph

France’s Benchwarmers Are Worth More Than Most Starting Lineups

“France enters today’s semifinal match against neighboring Belgium as the favorite to win the 2018 World Cup. At least on paper, though, France has been the least remarkable team of the four that remain: Les Bleus have scored fewer goals than each of the other semifinalists, they’ve possessed less of the ball than two of the other semifinalists, and they’ve taken the fewest shots.” FiveThirtyEight

Did Pelé–by playing a match in Nigeria–cause a ceasefire during the Biafran War?

“The story goes that in 1969 the great Brazilian footballer Pelé and his club, Santos, stopped the Nigerian civil war for 48 hours as the warring factions (Nigeria and Biafra) put aside their differences for a couple of days for Santos to play in the country. But did this really happen? And how come the world’s greatest player came to Nigeria in the first place? In this essay, I look back through the archives in search of the real story of Pelé in Nigeria.” Africa is a Country, W – Nigerian Civil War

Nigeria vs Argentina: Ever Banega’s return frees Lionel Messi from creative duties to inspire victory

“Argentina required a late goal from a hugely unlikely source – the right boot of Marcos Rojo – but their approach throughout their 2-1 victory over Nigeria was at least an improvement upon past displays. How much credit manager Jorge Sampaoli can take remains questionable, however, after various reports Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano are effectively now running the dressing room.” Independent – Michael Cox

What’s wrong with Argentina? We now value ‘balls’ more than talent
“So many things are wrong with Argentina we do not know what is wrong; so much is happening no one knows what is happening. You could start an article on the news pages with that same line but they fit on the sports pages too because these are turbulent times for our football. It was not always like this. For many years, football made up for our long political, social and economic decline.” Guardian

From Elimination to Elation: Argentina Somehow Staves Off Early World Cup Exit

“It’s probably best not even to try to make sense of it. You have Lionel Messi in your side. You bring on Sergio Aguero to play alongside Gonzalo Higuain in front of him. You have taken off Angel Di Maria. You have just brought on Cristian Pavon. None of them look like scoring. Passes are misplaced. The shape has gone. Every attempt to advance, it seems, runs into a Nigerian wall. It’s the same story as against Iceland, as against Croatia. All of the ball, no penetration. And then the goal comes. You make all your plans, you squeeze in as many gifted forwards as you can, and somehow the vital 86th-minute winner is scored by Marcos Rojo turning up with no justification whatsoever to volley in a rare accurate cross from Gabriel Mercado. With his wrong foot.” SI – Jonathan Wilson

Argentina Takes Its Bad Self to the Knockout Round
“With time running out and his team on the brink of group-stage elimination, everyone in the world knew there was only one man Argentina could count on to find the winner against Nigeria. Yes, Marcos Rojo, the versatile defender who made nine Premier League appearances for Manchester United this season. Scorer of four goals in the last four years for club and country. Perhaps the last person you might expect to save his country by scoring a late goal, other than Argentina forward and chronic international choker Gonzalo Higuain. Rojo’s claim, made in an interview after the game, that he told his teammates he was going to score is either a sign of a healthy, functioning ego or grounds for a psychiatric evaluation, even considering that one of those four goals in the last four years was the winner against Nigeria in the 2014 World Cup.” Slate

Argentina Survived the Group Stage. But How Far Can Messi Carry Them?
“On a team with Lionel Messi, Sergio Agüero, Gonzalo Higuaín, and Ángel Di María, few would have predicted that Marcos Rojo — yes, that Marcos Rojo; the one who scored just one goal in four seasons with Manchester United — would be the hero who put Argentina ahead of Nigeria and into the knockout stages.” The Ringer

Argentina Gets a Clean World Cup Slate After Marcos Rojo’s Heroic Volley

“Day 13 of World Cup 2018 is done, and the second night of simultaneous group finales brought another evening of memorable drama. Argentina got the victory and help it needed to survive and advance in a thrilling 2-1 win against Nigeria, while Iceland lost to Croatia 2-1. And in Group C, France and Denmark played a dreadful 0-0 tie that allowed Denmark advance to the knockout rounds as a second-place finisher, while Australia squandered its chance to make things interesting in a 2-0 loss to Peru.” SI

Chaos as Poland falls to earth with a bump

“It seemed to come completely out of the blue. Poland, a side that had stormed through the Euro 2016 qualifiers, made it to the quarter finals of the main tournament, qualified again easily for the World Cup, in the top 10 in the world rankings, blessed with world class players like Robert Lewandowski, have somehow tumbled out of the World Cup with a whimper not a bang, totally devoid of any of the qualities that have been their trademark over the last four years or so. How did this disaster happen?” Rightbankwarsaw

Why do African countries hire non-African football coaches so much?

“It seemed strange when in the run-up to Afcon 2013, Nigeria’s coach Stephen Keshi forcefully criticised African football associations for their preference for white coaches. That when Zambia, until this week the great success story of African football, had Hervé Renard to thank for masterminding their unlikely triumph last year in Libreville. Yet Keshi has a point. The success of Zambia under Renard should not obscure the fact that African football administrators have always failed to appreciate and make use of its own resources and talent. This is true of football as it is of Africa’s national economies.” Africa is a Country

Subs Spark Brazil, Musa Inspires Nigeria, Stars Shine for Switzerland at World Cup

“Day 9 of World Cup 2018 is done, highlighted by Brazil’s late 2-0 win against Costa Rica and the tears of Neymar, Nigeria’s breathtaking 2-0 victory against Iceland and Switzerland’s 2-1 comeback triumph against Serbia. The results set up what will be an incredible set of final matchdays across both groups. In Group D, only Croatia is through, and Nigeria, Iceland Argentina all remain alive for the second spot in the knockout stage. In Group E, no team has secured its knockout place yet, setting up a tense Brazil-Serbia encounter and an important Switzerland-Costa Rica one, even with Los Ticos being eliminated after their hard-fought loss.” SI

When Cameroon Convinced Themselves They Couldn’t Win

“If the spirits of Frantz Fanon and Steve Biko were hovering unseen above a football stadium in Naples in July, 1990, they would not have liked what they saw. But they would have found it sadly predictable. The stadium hosted a World Cup quarter-final between Cameroon and England. The more skilled team, Cameroon, lost. They were beaten not by England but by themselves.” Jacobon

Argentina Is The Team To Beat In Group D, But Can Messi (Finally) Win The Tournament?

“Lionel Messi still has not won a senior international tournament.¹ His Argentina was defeated by Germany in the last World Cup and lost on penalty kicks to Chile in the final of the Copa America in both 2015 and 2016. La Albiceleste will be looking to win Messi the trophy he deserves, and for the first step on that journey, the team has been drawn into an entirely winnable group with Croatia, Iceland and Nigeria.” FiveThirtyEight

World Cup favourites choosing defensive-minded midfielders over deep-lying playmakers

“The most fascinating tactical development over the past few World Cups has been the increased popularity of the deep playmaker. Having nearly become extinct around the turn of the century, it’s notable that recent World Cup winners have generally depended upon a great creative influence from deep.” ESPN – Michael Cox (Video)

World Cup Preview 2018: Messi vs. Ronaldo, Magic Cats, Iceland!!, and the Entire Emotional Context in Which Much of Human Life Transpires

“Ladies and gentlemen, start your psychic octopuses. The biggest and strangest sporting event in human history resumes next week in Russia, where thirty-two men’s national soccer teams will begin the monthlong competition for the strangely un-cup-like trophy given to the winners of the FIFA World Cup. For many of the world’s best soccer players, the tournament offers a chance to become legends in their home countries and icons in the history of the game. For billions of soccer fans, the tournament offers a chance to participate in modernity’s most sweeping collective frenzy, a spectacle that will shape the emotional context in which much of human life transpires for the next few weeks. For the United States men’s national team, which did not qualify, the tournament offers a chance to feel gloomy while eating Cheetos on the couch.” New Yorker – Brian Phillips

Who’s the Best No. 10 at the World Cup?

“In Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Soccer Tactics, Jonathan Wilson describes the symbolism of the no. 10 as “the ‘free-spirited epitome of the artistry of soccer.’ And while free-spirits have become fewer and farther between as more money’s been poured into the game and managers have systematized their tactics, the no. 10 is still typically given to the most creative player on the team. Or, in Poland or Nigeria’s case, it’s given to a defensive midfielder best known for his ability to make tackles and pass the ball sideways. But each team has its reasons, and so with all of the World Cup squad lists now officially released, we each ranked all the nos. 10 set to play in Russia this summer, tallied the results, and came out with the following list. No. 1 is obvious, but that’s about the only spot we came close to agreeing on. Yes, someone, who shall remain nameless out of our sheer fear for his safety, didn’t put Lionel Messi first.” The Ringer

World Cup groups A-D preview – Football Weekly

“Max Rushden is joined by voices from around the world to preview World Cup groups A-D, including Danish royalty, Peruvian vigour and the prospect of a tournament without a French meltdown.” Guardian (Audio)