30th November, 2018
By Kazeem Ugbodaga
The Confederation African Football (CAF) has stopped Cameroon from hosting next year’s African Nations Cup tournament.
The tournament is supposed to be hosted by Cameroon next year, but CAF said the nation had not put on ground the needed facilities to show that it was ready to host Africa’s biggest football showpiece.
CAF halted Cameroon’s bid to host the tournament at the Extraordinary meeting of the Executive Committee in Accra, Ghana, on Friday.
According to CAF, in a statement on its website, one of the important subjects debated was the organisation of the upcoming 2019 Total Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), due to be held in Cameroon and that after significant debate and having received detailed updates from numerous inspection visits over nearly 18 months, CAF had noted that a number of compliance conditions had not been met.
“In addition, after having heard from representatives of the governmental and sports authorities of Cameroon, and reviewed the latest progress on preparations, CAF notes the gap between the requirements of hosting the AFCON and realities on the ground.
“Furthermore, after hearing the conclusions of the CAF Security Inspection Team during their most recent visit to Cameroon, CAF concludes that the Africa Cup of Nations could not be exposed to any issues that could impact on the success of the most prestigious African competition.
“After having considered that a simple postponement of the tournament was impossible because of CAF’s contractual commitments, and the importance of maintaining the competition calendar, the CAF Executive Committee decided that the next edition of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations could not be held in Cameroon,” it said.
CAF said this decision, without appeal, would mean that the body would now initiate an open and urgent call for new host country bids to ensure AFCON 2019 took place next summer.
“CAF will ensure that a new host is in place by 31st December 2018, and it will communicate openly and transparently on the process and subsequent decision.
“CAF reiterates that Cameroon remains a serious candidate to organize a future edition of AFCON, and acknowledges that Cameroon has mobilized significant resources and worked tirelessly to host AFCON 2019.
“CAF unequivocally reiterates its strong commitment to work closely with Cameroon’s government authorities to mutually agree a new AFCON framework and timetable – should it agree to host a future edition,” it said