Sports
AFCON 2021 Commences Sunday Amid Separatists, COVID-19 Threats
By Adedapo Adesanya
Sunday, January 9, 2022, will usher in the 33rd edition of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon, less than a year since the coronavirus halted plans for the tournament initially scheduled for the year 2021.
Twenty four countries will be jostling for the trophy across six cities – Bafoussam, Douala, Garoua, Limbé, Olembe and Yaoundé in the East African country.
Among the six stadiums that will host the matches of the competition, the stadium of Limbé where group F will play has been considered a danger zone, witnessing a full-blown insurrection, where English-speaking separatists opposing the Francophone government have been fighting to form a breakaway state and have started to use improvised explosive devices.
Although the Cameroonian government has boosted security; human rights groups and activists have warned that the threats by the separatists should be taken seriously.
The rising cases of COVID-19 amongst players have led to led to alarm but organisers are determined to go ahead with the game.
The President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Mr Patrice Motsepe, promised an incredible competition despite the challenges being envisaged.
One of such measures to limit the risk of the speared of the virus during the tournament is to reduce the capacities of the various stadiums. Aside from this, only fully vaccinated fans with proof of negative virus tests will be allowed to attend games.
AFCON 2022 Groups
Group A: Cameroon (hosts), Burkina Faso, Cape Verde Islands, Ethiopia
Group B: Guinea, Malawi, Senegal, Zimbabwe
Group C: Comoros Islands, Gabon, Ghana, Morocco
Group D: Egypt, Guinea Bissau, Nigeria, Sudan
Group E: Algeria, Equatorial Guinea, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone
Group F: Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Tunisia
AFCON 2022 Group Stage Fixtures (Nigerian time)
January 9: Matchday 1 on Sunday
4 pm: Cameroon v Burkina Faso
7 pm: Ethiopia v Cape Verde
January 10: Matchday 2 on Monday
1 pm: Senegal v Zimbabwe
4 pm: Guinea v Malawi
4 pm: Morocco v Ghana
7 pm: Comoros v Gabon
January 11: Matchday 3 on Tuesday
1 pm: Algeria v Sierra Leone
4 pm: Nigeria v Egypt
7 pm: Sudan v Guinea Bissau
January 12: Matchday 4 on Wednesday
1 pm: Tunisia v Mali
4 pm: Mauritania v Gambia
7 pm: Equatorial Guinea v Ivory Coast
Round two fixtures;
January 13: Matchday 5
4pm: Cameroon v Ethiopia
7pm: Cape Verde v Burkina Faso
January 14: Matchday 6
1pm: Senegal v Guinea
4pm: Malawi v Zimbabwe
4pm: Morocco v Comoros
7 pm: Gabon v Ghana
January 15: Matchday 7
4pm: Nigeria v Sudan
7pm: Guinea Bissau v Egypt
January 16: Matchday 8
1pm: Gambia v Mali
4pm: Ivory Coast v Sierra Leone
4pm: Tunisia v Mauritania
7pm: Algeria v Equitoria Guinea
Round of three — last group games;
January 17: Matchday 9
4pm: Burkina Faso v Ethiopia
4pm: Cape Verde v Cameroon
January 18: Matchday 10
4pm: Malawi v Senegal
4pm: Zimbabwe v Guinea
7pm: Gabon v Morocco
7pm: Ghana v Comoros
January 19: Matchday 11
7pm: Egypt v Sudan
7pm: Guinea Bissau v Nigeria
January 20: Matchday 12
4pm: Ivory Coast v Algeria
4pm: Sierra Leone v Equatorial Guinea
7pm: Gambia v Tunisia
7pm: Mali v Mauritania
Round of 16
January 23
4pm: Runner-up Group A vs Runner-up Group C at Limbe Stadium, Limbe
7pm: Winner Group D vs 3rd Group B/E/F at Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua
January 24
4pm: Runner-up Group B vs Runner-up Group F at Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam
7pm: Winner Group A vs 3rd Group C/D/E at Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé
January 25
4pm: Winner Group B vs 3rd Group A/C/D at Kouekong Stadium, Bafoussam
7pm: Winner Group C vs 3rd Group A/B/F at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé
January 26
4pm: Winner Group E vs Runner-up Group D at Japoma Stadium, Douala
7pm: Winner Group F vs Runner-up Group E at Limbe Stadium, Limbe
Quarterfinals Pairings;
Quarter-Final B: January 29
4pm: Winner R16-M4 vs Winner R16-M3 at Japoma Stadium, Douala
Quarter-Final A: January 29
7pm: Winner R16-M1 vs Winner R16-M2 at Roumdé Adjia Stadium, Garoua
Quarter-Final C: January 30
4pm: Winner R16-M7 v Winner R16-M6 at Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé
Quarter-Final D: January 30
7pm: Winner R16-M5 vs Winner R16-M8 at Japoma Stadium, Douala
Semifinal Pairings;
SF 1: February 2
7pm: Winner QF A vs Winner QF D at Japoma Stadium, Douala
SF 2: February 3
7pm: Winner QF B vs Winner QF C at Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé
Third-place Match: February 6
5pm: Loser SF1 vs Loser SF2 at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé
Final: February 6
7pm: Winner SF1 vs Winner SF2 at Olembe Stadium, Yaoundé
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s Super Falcons have failed to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup after suffering a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in their play-off encounter on Thursday night.
The Nigerian team, reeling from a 1-0 loss to Cameroon in the quarter-finals of the CAF Women’s African Cup of Nations (WAFCON) on Sunday, showed no signs of putting their misery to bed as they went two goals down to the Bayana Bayana team. It took a late penalty scored by Christy Uchebe to halve the deficit after the South Africans went down to 10 players.
The Super Falcons needed a victory against their opponents to progress to the next stage of the qualification process and secure one of the two available tickets to the intercontinental play-offs. The defeat ended their hopes of making it to the 2027 tournament, which will be hosted by Brazil.
The result brings an end to Nigeria’s remarkable record of appearing at every edition of the Women’s World Cup since the tournament was first held in 1991.
The play-offs were introduced to determine the final African representatives after four teams were eliminated at the quarter-final stage of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
Two qualification tickets were available, with Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire battling for the opportunity to advance.
Ghana secured one of the available tickets after defeating Côte d’Ivoire 2-1, while South Africa claimed the other following their victory over the Super Falcons.
The Super Falcons had featured in all previous editions of the tournament, making their absence from the 2027 World Cup a significant moment in the history of Nigerian women’s football.
It also raises fresh questions about the direction of Nigerian national football after the Super Eagles also failed to qualify for the recently concluded FIFA World Cup held in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
European football returns with a bang as the new season kicks off. The dust has barely settled on the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but European football wastes no time getting back to business. Over the next two weeks, the continent’s prominent competitions will launch in quick succession, giving fans a dense run of fixtures across the UEFA Super Cup, the FA Community Shield, La Liga, the Premier League and Serie A.
Paris Saint-Germain, fresh off back-to-back Champions League triumphs, faces Aston Villa in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday 12 August at 8pm which will be airing on Supersport across DStv & GOtv, with the French side chasing a second successive Super Cup crown against an Aston Villa team that has become an increasingly serious force in European competition.
England’s traditional curtain-raiser follows four days later. The FA Community Shield, staged in Cardiff on Sunday 16 August at 3pm, pits Premier League champions Arsenal against FA Cup holders Manchester City, the latter beginning life under new manager Enzo Maresca, while Arsenal look to reinforce their status as the team to beat.
Spain gets moving over the same weekend, with La Liga’s opening round running from Saturday 15 to Monday 17 August. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have all been given extended rest following Spain’s World Cup win, leaving the door open for the chasing pack to set an early pace before Matchday 2 arrives from 20 to 24 August.
The Premier League then starts the following weekend, running from Friday 21 to Monday 24 August. Champions Arsenal open their title defence at home to promoted Coventry, before a full round of fixtures featuring Manchester United, Tottenham, Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea, among others, round out the opening weekend. Serie A joins the calendar on the same weekend, from 22 to 24 August, with holders Inter Milan starting their title defence against Monza and Napoli, Juventus, Milan and Roma all in early action.
With five major competitions launching inside a fortnight, the new European season promises an unrelenting start. All the action will be available live on SuperSport, across DStv and GOtv.
A blockbuster week of sporting action awaits DStv and GOtv subscribers, with the decisive stages of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), UEFA Super Cup, FA Community Shield and Trophée des Champions among the major attractions.
Football takes centre stage as WAFCON reaches its business end in Morocco, with the semi-finals scheduled for Wednesday.
Defending champions Nigeria will not be involved after the Super Falcons were eliminated by Cameroon in the quarter-finals, losing 1-0. Their exit means a new champion will be crowned when the tournament concludes on Sunday.
The first semi-final will see Algeria face Malawi on Wednesday before hosts Morocco take on Cameroon at 21:00 WAT, later in the day. Both matches will be broadcast live on SuperSport. The third-place play-off is scheduled for Saturday, with the final taking place in Rabat on Sunday at 20:00 WAT.
European silverware will also be at stake on Wednesday when Paris Saint-Germain face Aston Villa in the UEFA Super Cup at Stadion Salzburg in Austria. The fixture pits Champions League winners PSG against Europa League winners Aston Villa and will be shown live on SuperSport 20:00 WAT.
The action continues on Sunday with the FA Community Shield, as Arsenal take on Manchester 15:00 WAT. The traditional curtain-raiser for the English season will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
French football will also have early-season silverware at stake when Lens host PSG in the Trophee des Champions on Sunday at Stade Bollaert-Delelis. The match kicks off at 20:00 WAT and will be live on SuperSport.
The new La Liga season gets underway on Saturday, with Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and the other leading Spanish clubs beginning their campaigns.
Beyond football, cricket fans will have plenty to enjoy as The Hundred reaches its climax on Sunday, with the women’s final followed by the men’s final. Both matches will be available on SuperSport Cricket.
Combat sports will also take the spotlight with UFC 330 from Philadelphia on Saturday, adding another major attraction to SuperSport’s weekend line-up.
