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The Confederation of African Football appears to have made a U-turn on its quest to find a new host for the 2017 Afcon championships. Previously, the body had invited all willing associations to submit bids for the hosting rights. However, at the weekend, Caf president Issa Hayatou is reported to have announced that only countries that have hosted the tournament before would get the coveted finals.
It seems that the powers-that-be at Caf want to manipulate the bidding process in favour of certain countries or regions on the continent.
It would not be surprising if the 2017 finals are awarded to a country from West or North Africa.

Last week, Caf awarded the 2019, 2021 and 2023 Afcon finals to West African countries of Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire and Guinea respectively.
Statistics show that previous editions of the championships have been held in either North or West Africa with the exception of 1996 and 2013 when they were held in South Africa.

The 2013 championships were awarded to South Africa by default because the original winner, Libya, which was also due to host the 2017 games, was in the midst of civil war.

While Caf pretends to be representative of African football, it makes no secret of its bias to West and North African countries. This might not be strange given Hayatou comes from Cameroon while Caf headquarters are in Egypt.

It is odd that Caf wants a previous host to again host the tournament when there are many African countries that have been bidding year-in and year-out but losing. Afcon should not become a monopoly of a few countries.

Zimbabwe was once awarded the tournament in 2000 but the rights were taken away at the last minute because the government did not provide the required guarantee. The hosting rights were immediately awarded to countries in West Africa, Ghana and Nigeria.

This time around, our government has indicated that it would support any bid by Zifa to host the finals but Caf seems prepared to pull the rug from the local football mother body’s feet.

Despite these open attempts to rig the bidding process, Zifa should go ahead and submit its proposal to host the finals. Zimbabwe has the necessary infrastructure that needs only slight sprucing up to bring it up to standard.

The latest machinations by Caf show that the time has come for football bodies outside West and North Africa to say enough is enough and demand that Caf serve the interest of all member states.

We suggested that the continental body comes up with a formula that ensures that all regions on the continent get a chance to host the tournament.
Fifa, which used to suffer from the same syndrome and awarded the prestigious World Cup to either Europe, USA or a few South American countries, changed this and started rotating the finals among continents in 2000 although this will come to an end in 2018. Because of rotations, Africans were allowed a chance to watch the world’s biggest football showcase on their own soil in 2010 for the first time when South Africa hosted it.

Caf should seriously consider rotating Afcon championships among the geographical regions of Africa if it is to be respected as a truly representative body. This way, all regions get a chance to host the top sporting event on the continent. Hosting the tournament, though costly, also provides many opportunities for the host country. Tourism is boosted while many legacy projects are left behind. These benefits must be enjoyed by all, not just a cabal.