Malabo
THE 30th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations kicked off yesterday, with organisers, players and fans hoping the tournament can thrive in the face of adversity.
It was only in November that Equatorial Guinea took over as hosts from Morocco, whose plea to postpone the finals over fears about the spread of Ebola was rejected by the Confederation of African Football (Caf).
With concerns over the short time for Equatorial Guinea to prepare, worries about potentially poor attendances at matches in remote parts of the country and doubts about the infrastructure and facilities, football itself has taken a back seat in the build-up to the 16-team, 17 January to 8 February event.
It is not the first time the small, oil-rich Central African state of Equatorial Guinea, with a population of just 740 000, has hosted the tournament – they did so jointly with Gabon in 2012. However, the extra burden of going it alone, and at such late notice, is weighing heavily.
Matches will be hosted in four cities; Bata and Malabo – as they were three years ago – and in Mongomo and Ebebiyin. The new venues will be relatively basic because there has been insufficient time to build better facilities in those towns.
The stadium in Ebebiyin has a reported capacity of only 5 000. Even so, there is a real chance of it not being filled – one of the 2012 Nations Cup matches hosted by the country was attended by a tiny crowd of 200 people.
It is that kind of statistic which has moved the country’s president Teodoro Obiang Nguema to personally pay for 40 000 tickets for fans to attend matches.
“We have to buy tickets to fill stadiums,” said Nguema. “Let those who have the means help the poor.”
Additionally, the hotel capacity in the new host cities is minimal, making it a struggle for both media and fans to find accommodation and follow the tournament.
On the pitch, little is expected of the team, who were eliminated from the qualifiers when they were penalised for fielding an ineligible player – Cameroon-born Thierry Fidieu Tazemeta – in a match against Mauritania, only to be reinstated when they stepped in as hosts.
It would be the biggest shock in the history of the tournament if the “National Thunder” became the 12th hosts to lift the trophy.
Their chances of making any impact have not been helped by the fact their new coach, Argentine Esteban Becker, was appointed 11 days before the opening game of the finals.
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