Cote d’Ivoire announced late Tuesday its withdrawal from hosting the 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations just weeks before the commencement of the tournament.
The tournament was originally scheduled for April 26 to May 18, 2025.
In a statement (via Yabiladi.com), the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) announced: “The President of the Ivorian Football Federation and Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations, Yacine Idriss Diallo, confirms that the government has officially notified FIF of its decision to withdraw from hosting the tournament.
“Following the President’s directives, the Executive Director relayed this information to the CAF Secretary General on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. The President extends his deep gratitude to all those involved in the organizational efforts and affirms that all parties will be informed of CAF’s decisions regarding this situation.”
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CAF had already conducted the draw for the tournament on February 13, 2025, in Cairo, Egypt.
Group A comprise Cote d’Ivoire, Dr Congo, Ghana, Tanzania and Central African Republic, Group B has Nigeria’s Flying Eagles, Egypt, South Africa and Morocco.
Then Group C has champions Senegal, Zambia, Kenya and Sierra Leone.
Meanwhile, there are reports that CAF is discussing with Egypt about replacing Côte d’Ivoire as host.
The four semi-finalists will qualify as Africa’s representatives for the 2025 U-20 World Cup in Chile.
2 Comments
Their National teams must be banned from all competitions for allowing government interference. Only in Africa will this madness happen. Nonsense can you imagine a month to competition or because you don’t have good players you boycott a tournament hosting. You think say na beans when no Covid excuse as Morocco did.
Seriously, I can’t understand CAF. You want countries to bail you out now. Ok when it was qualification you zoned it and pitched strong west African countries to eliminate themselves out. Now the formula is absent to look for a host alternative. When the issue of caf and fifa executive election came out countries like Liberia and Dijibouti got seat. You now expect countries who should have bailed you out to help now. It doesn’t work like that go to Liberia and Dijibouti now. Infact it is an insult counties without standard football pitches should not even have referred in caf because on what pitches do they perfect their reffereing. This is just the begining of the Trump reciprocity to CAF