Sports
2017 AFCON: Hosts To Be Known In April
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) have announced the hosts for the 2017 AFCON will be named on April 8 in Cairo, Egypt.
Seven bids have been received for this competition – Algeria, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Sudan and Zimbabwe and later reduced to four countries.
The qualifying tournament will begin in June with the host nation taking part for the first time, but their matches will be considered as friendlies and will not be computed for points.
The draw for the competition will also be done on April 8 in Cairo, Egypt.
A total of 52 teams are expected to enter for the qualifiers and will be divided into 13 groups with the winners qualifying for the final tournament as well as the two best runners-up.
Only one team will come out of the group that features the host nation.
CAF also announced that the 2018 World Cup qualifiers will begin in October.
There will be three preliminary rounds to bring the teams to 20 teams, who will then be divided into five groups of four teams each.
The winners of these five groups will qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Action between Zambia and Cape Verde during thier final group match at the ongoing 2015 AFCON on Monday.
Rivers United FC of Port Harcourt contingent, comprising players, technical crew, backroom staff, and officials, depart the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos State on Wednesday, bound for Kinshasa, DR Congo.
The team is set to face FC Les Aigles du Congo in the first-round first-leg match of the CAF Champions League.
This was contained in a press release signed by the media officer of the club, Charles Mayuku and made available to Tidesports on Wednesday.
He said that the highly anticipated match is scheduled to take place at the 80,000-capacity Kinshasa-Complexe Omnisports Stade des Martyrs on morrow with kickoff slated for 3:30pm.
According to the statement the encounter marks the first-ever meeting between both sides in any competition, adding that an air of excitement and unpredictability to the fixture.
“As the Pride of Nigeria embarks on this crucial journey, the team is determined to return with a decent result that will set them up favorably for the second leg on Sunday, 28th September” the statement said.
The new rankings, released via FIFA’s official X handle on Thursday, reflect the team’s continued struggles under Coach Eric Chelle amid a stuttering 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
This marks a second consecutive decline after the Nigerian side dropped from 43rd to 44th in August on the back of poor outings in recent international matches.
Despite Nigeria’s setback, several African teams made progress. Morocco remains the continent’s highest-ranked side, sitting 11th in the world after winning eight of their last nine matches. Senegal, Egypt, Algeria and Côte d’Ivoire complete Africa’s top five.
Lesotho slipped to 153rd place, while Benin Republic, Nigeria’s upcoming opponent, climbed to 93rd. South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, who held the Super Eagles to a 1-1 draw in June, rose to 55th, strengthening their bid for World Cup qualification.
Zimbabwe had the biggest slide down the ranking table, dropping nine places to 125th position in the world.
The rankings highlight Nigeria’s struggle to regain form on the global stage as key rivals continue to surge ahead.
Similarly, the Super Falcons of Nigeria remain 36th best in the world], while the Spanish female national team replaced the USA at the top of the women’s ranking.
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