AFCON2023 SHOWCASING THE GROWTH OF AFRICAN FOOTBALL

 

 The 34^th African Nations Cup started on the 13^th of January with much thrill, fanfare, and excitement in Cote d’Ivoire. The results so far have shown the extent to which football has evolved in Africa within the past two decades. Twenty-four nations are participating in this tournament, but with the outcome of the results at this stage of the competition, there appears to be an immense growth amongst African nations to the extent that there’s an absolute drop in the gap between the so-called ‘soccer greats’ of African football and the ‘assumed minnows’!

 

THE EVENTS THAT IMPACTED AFRICAN FOOTBALL

The growth of modern football has evolved with diverse twists but nothing has been more far-reaching than the democratization of football with the outcome of the Bosman ruling, the founding of the European Union, and their attendant effects on enhancing the revenue potential of the game.  This assertion does not disregard the role of the regulators of world football, the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), especially during the era of Presidents Joao Havelange and Joseph Sepp Blatter. Their shrewd business sagacity brought huge revenues from broadcast rights in FIFA Competitions and monumental collaborations with several conglomerates. The era of the former, as President, brought the introduction of the age-grade world cup competitions, namely the U-20(1977) and U-17(1985). These competitions were targeted to bring development to football in every continent and they adopted a catch-them-young strategy in developing nations. Whilst the first U-20 World Cup was hosted in Tunisia, the U-17 was hosted in China, both countries, being developing football nations of that era. These policies were further strengthened with the disbursement of development grants to help these nations build capacity in training, coaching, and building infrastructure.

INDICES OF DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICAN FOOTBALL

Within the past two decades, the effect on African football has been tremendous. With the outcome of the Bosman rule, Africa became a hunting ground for skilled footballers for most clubs in Europe. With this exposure to better remuneration, training facilities, and technical coaching skills, these players became adept with the intricacies of modern football and their performances have continued to grow by the day!

Apart from the FIFA World Cup competition which no African nation has won, they have won every other international competition and individual honors for players. George Opong Weah won the Balloon D’or in 1995, Finidi George and Kanu Nwankwo, won the European Champions League with Ajax Amsterdam, same with John Mikel Obi, with Chelsea FC, of England….the list is endless.

The current results at the AFCON2023 have produced several unimaginable outcomes that clearly show the closing gap between these nations. The matches below would have been a myth a decade ago, but this reality gives an insight into how this gap has closed. Most African nations have their skilled footballers plying their trade outside their country but in more developed leagues with better facilities and financial remuneration.

See: matches

Cape Verde 2-1 Ghana
Egypt 2-2 Mozambique
Equatorial Guinea 1-1 Nigeria
Cote d'Ivoire 2-0 Guinea-Bissau

Tunisia 0-1 Namibia

Mozambique 0- 3 Cape Verde

 

Football has been transformed to become an occupation with huge revenue rewards. Amidst the ineptitude of several African governments, it has lifted several African families from acute poverty, giving them a new lease of life. Every African player who has crafted a football career for themselves stands a good chance of building a more secure life and that remains an attraction for several African youths. This factor remains the greatest incentive that has enhanced African football's evolution and will remain so for a long time! However, more still needs to be done to strengthen the local leagues to make it attractive to others and continue to produce rare talents for the diaspora.

 

N.B:

At the point of publishing this article, Cape Verde, a nation considered a minnow of African football has become the first team to qualify in the group of 16.