CAF sets August 15 as new date for Afcon draw

The Flames will finally know their opponents at next year’s Cameroon 2020 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) on August 15.

Confederation of African Football (CAF) has set the new date for the draw after postponing it last month.

The draw was initially set for June 25, but CAF announced it had rescheduled it due to “logistical reasons” caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) general secretary Alfred Gunda confirmed the development in an interview yesterday.

He said: “We got communication from CAF about the new date. The draw will now be held next month in Yaounde, Cameroon.”

There were fears that the host nation might change after CAF and Fifa inspectors established that some of the facilities in Cameroon were not ready.

But football analyst Charles Nyirenda said the announcement of the draw venue, means the tournament’s hosts will not change.

“The draw is usually held where the tournament will be held. The fact that the draw will be held in Yaounde simply means there won’t be any change,” he said.

Nyirenda said the announcement is a relief to qualified teams as it is important in preparations.

“When you know which teams you are going to face, it helps to plan rather than planning blindly,” he said.

FAM has formed a task force headed by its first vice-president Jabbar Alide, a High Court of Malawi judge, to mobilise resources for the Flames participation at the continental showpiece.

The tournament, which is scheduled for January 9 to February 6, 2022, was supposed to take place in January and February 2021 only to be pushed by 12 months due to Covid-19.

This edition will see and increased number of 24 teams participating at the tournament.

Malawi qualified after finishing as Group B runners up behind Burkina Faso. Uganda finished third while South Sudan anchored the group.