Political backbiting has led to accusations Fifa is running the show as tournament switches to four-year cycle
It was a decision that took many by surprise, although not those who have been watching closely since February 2020. Members of the Confederation of African Football’s (Caf) executive committee, along with various other dignitaries including George Weah, the former Ballon d’Or winner and president of Liberia at the time, were assembled in Rabat at a seminar to hear Gianni Infantino outline his plan for the development of competitions and infrastructure in African football.
As well as improving standards in refereeing and mobilising investment in the continent’s infrastructure, the president of Fifa floated the prospect of holding its most important tournament, the Africa Cup of Nations, every four years instead of every two and described the current arrangement as “useless”. The argument ran that it would be more beneficial for countries “at the commercial level” and would help to “project African football to the top of the world”. “Let us show the world what we can do,” added Infantino. “This day is special – it’s the start of a new chapter for African football.”
More than five years on and Infantino has got his way. From 2028, a tournament that has caused big disruption to European leagues for more than three decades due to its scheduling in the middle of the domestic season will now take place in four-year cycles. That may be welcomed by many Premier League managers and sporting directors, but there are understood to be widespread fears within several African federations that they will lose out as a consequence, with 80% of Caf’s revenue having historically been drawn from Afcon.
