The players of the 40 African selections who were preparing to participate in the second round of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will have to put their boots away. Initially scheduled for June, the matches of the major teams of the continent and those from the first round, will not be held until September. A change of schedule decided in extremis by the African Football Confederation (CAF) after the publication of a damning report on the state of sports infrastructure in Africa.
Carried out by CAF itself, the survey presented in early May reveals that 22 countries do not have a stadium to international standards. But among them, eight are engaged in the qualifications for the World Cup (Senegal, Central African Republic, Mali, Malawi, Burkina Faso, Niger, Namibia, Liberia). “The postponement was decided to give them the necessary time to do the rehabilitation work. Maintaining the matches in June would have required certain matches to be held abroad, on neutral ground ”, justifies a member of CAF.
To comply with the specifications of international bodies, the enclosures must have a capacity of at least 10,000 seats, a lawn and quality changing rooms, suitable lighting or safety devices. However, few infrastructures meet these requirements in Africa, including in countries with strong teams. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Tunisia and Côte d’Ivoire have only one approved stadium each. Only South Africa (thirteen enclosures), Egypt and Nigeria (seven), Morocco (six), Cameroon (five) and Equatorial Guinea (four) stand out.
Lack of long-term vision
In this context, “The postponement announced by CAF is a cold shower, but that was to be expected”, says Ferdinand Coly, former defender of the Teranga Lions: “The Senegal team played its last matches at the Lat-Dior stadium in Thiès, which is not very functional. For a country like ours, not having a modern speaker that meets standards is still sad. The problem is linked to the maintenance and upkeep of the stadiums: we build without worrying about putting in the means to perpetuate the buildings. How many stadiums in Africa have been built for the CAN [Coupe d’Afrique des nations] before suffering the effects of a lack of follow-up? “
For the Moroccan Hicham El Amrani, secretary general of CAF from 2011 to 2017, the problem is indeed more related to a lack of long-term vision than to a shortage of resources. The former leader points to poor coordination between states, federations and municipalities: “It is not the role of the federations to maintain the stadiums, but of the States. Of course, for countries where health services are poorly functioning, the issue of a modern stadium will not be a priority. Bring a stadium out of the ground for a CAN, a CHAN [Championnat d’Afrique des nations] or the African Games, that’s one thing. But you have to think about the rest, understand that the stadium must be a converted living space. People come there for sports competitions, but also to attend shows, drink coffee, have lunch, and go shopping. “
Bad anticipation can lead to real disasters. Some stadiums that have hosted CAN 2019 matches in Gabon are now in a deplorable state, such as Oyem (20,000 seats) and especially in Libreville, where the Friendship stadium (40,000 seats), built by the Chinese and inaugurated in 2011, is abandoned, forcing the national team to play its international matches in Franceville, more than 700 km from the capital.
“The temptation of gigantism”
The problem is unfortunately recurrent. Frenchman Claude Le Roy, who has coached several selections in Africa since 1985 (Cameroon, Senegal, DRC, Ghana, Congo, Togo), has often observed it: “One of the major problems is that we do not pay enough attention to the condition of the fields, which is the instrument of the players’ work. In Africa there is sun and rain. Everything you need to have good lawns. “
The French technician pleads for the construction of stadiums on a human scale. In many countries, the impoverishment of the level of local competitions has caused growing public disinterest. “There is no point in building stadiums that are too large, to give in to the temptation of gigantism. That some countries have 50,000-seat enclosures, why not, but on the condition of having regular use and maintaining them. I think it is better to have stadiums with 10 to 20,000 seats, modern, well maintained and comfortable, which will make people want to come. “
To compensate for these shortcomings, the International Football Federation (FIFA) has announced its intention to find funding to the tune of 830 million euros, in order to allow “The construction of at least one high quality stadium in CAF affiliated countries”, as stated by its president, Gianni Infantino, in February 2020. “But efforts must be more concentrated on the States where the needs are greatest, insists Hicham El Amrani. This subsidy must go hand in hand with agreements between FIFA, CAF, federations and states so that the money is not only well used, but also that there is a real strategy to perpetuate these stadiums. “