The Confederation of African Football have
confirmed that the Africa Cup of Nations will
be expanded from 16 teams to 24 as of the
2019 edition.
The expansion of the biennial tournament
was one of the key issues discussed during
the CAF Symposium in Morocco earlier this
week, and a statement issued by the
Confederation of African Football have
confirmed the decisions taken by the
working party.
As well as the expansion—the first since
1996—the tournament will be shifted from
January-February to June-July, a step which
brings the competition further in line with
the European football calendar.
However, there are other proposals which
have not been passed. The tournament will
remain every two years, rather than switch
to every four years, while the Caf statement
confirmed that the competition would be
played exclusively on African soil, with the
possibility of allowing other continents to
host the Afcon having been mooted.
The decision is sure to go down well with
European clubs and Europe-based players,
who will now avoid the regular player vs.
club wrangles that affect many of the
continent’s overseas players during Afcon
years.
However, the decision also raises various
unanswered questions. For example,
moving the Nations Cup to June and July
would appear to rule out a whole swathe of
potential hosts for whom the summer
months would be too hot for putting on the
continental showpiece.
The expansion also risks diluting the quality
of the tournament. The symposium has also
led to changes elsewhere in the continental
game; inter-club competitions will shift to an
August-May calendar – again a move which
aligns the African game with the European
calendar – having previously been played
within a single calendar year.
There will now be regional qualifiers for
age-grade Nations Cups – a move which will
doubtless affect West African hegemony of
the tournament – while Caf have also vowed
to improve international partnerships and
strengthen relationships between the
confederations, each national association,
governments and the African Union.
Finally, Caf have also promised to endorse
“the principle of creating a framework for
cooperation with legendary African
footballers and their greater involvement in
CAF activities.”
