The president of the African Football Confederation (CAF) confirmed on Tuesday that the Africa Cup of Nations, scheduled for January 9 to February 6, would be held on schedule in Cameroon, despite persistent rumors of postponement or of cancellation due to pandemic.
“On January 9, I will come to see (the opening match) between Cameroon and Burkina Faso,” Patrice Motsepe told reporters after a meeting with Cameroonian Head of State Paul Biya.
The variant “Omicron is a huge challenge”, however underlined Motsepe, who assured that “nobody will be (it) admitted in the stages without a PCR test”, whereas the organizers had already announced the obligation of vaccine and of test to access the stadiums.
The president of CAF made a statement to the press alongside the new president of the Cameroonian Football Federation, the former international of the Indomitable Lions, Samuel Eto’o. “I will also be there when the trophy is handed over by Eto’o”, at the end of the competition, he continued.
A competition already postponed by a year
Last week, the European Association of Clubs (ECA) threatened not to release international players for the CAN, worrying about the health protocol of the event against the backdrop of a pandemic.
In response, the government and CAF unveiled on Thursday the health framework for the test based on tests and vaccines.
But the ECA pointed out above all the risk of an absence of internationals longer than the period of provision provided, because of “quarantines and travel restrictions” linked in particular to the emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
In recent days, the rumors around a possible cancellation or a new postponement of the tournament were becoming more and more insistent. The competition, initially scheduled for 2021, had already been postponed for a year due to the pandemic.