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African Nations Forced to Play World Cup Qualifiers Abroad Due to Substandard Stadiums
Monday 16 August 2021, by
Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Djibouti will play their 2022 World Cup qualification matches from September, not at home, but in Morocco. The CAF has so decided because the stadiums of these countries, like those of four others, do not meet international standards.
In total, eight African football teams are affected by this decision of the African Football Confederation (CAF). This decision, which also applies to the Central African Republic, Guinea-Bissau, Malawi and Namibia, is taken after an inspection mission of their stadiums. Thus, Morocco will host the matches of Mali (Agadir), Burkina Faso and Niger (Marrakech) and Djibouti (Rabat), while Malawi and Namibia will play in Soweto, South Africa, the Central African Republic, in Douala in Cameroon and Guinea-Bissau in Mauritania (Nouakchott).
If Mali, which had six approved stadiums that allowed it to host the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) in 2002, is on the list, it is because of its inability to maintain them, like several other countries on the continent, the same source said, stressing that this decision by CAF is not surprising when we know that the South African Patrice Motsepe, since his election, had been very clear with the federations concerned, urging them to take their responsibilities.
The 40 African teams competing for one of the five places qualified for the final phase in Qatar will have to play two matches in September, one at home and one away, in this group stage. Two other matchdays are scheduled for October. The 10 best teams will face each other in March 2022, in direct elimination matches to determine the list of the five qualifiers for the World Cup in Qatar.