Date For 2010 African Cup Of Nations Draw Set

The draw for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations will be staged on November 20, 2009 in Luanda, Angola, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has announced.

The draw for the 27th edition of Africa’s showpiece football event will see 16 teams being divided into four groups for the competition, which takes place from January 10 to January 31, 2010.

The three-week tournament, the first of its kind to be hosted by the Southern African country, will take place in four cities - Luanda, Cabinda, Benguela and Lobango.

Currently, 20 countries are involved in the final round of qualifiers, which will also decide on the continent’s representatives for the 2010 FIFA World Cup slated for South Africa next June.

Of the four teams in each of the five groups, the top three will join hosts Angola for the continental fiesta, whilst the group winners will qualify for the World Cup.

CAF has also released the calendar for the tournament ahead of the draw. From the calendar, Group A teams will based in the Angolan capital, Luanda; Group B – Cabinda; Group C – Benguela; and Group D – Lubango.

The group phase matches will take place from January 10–21, followed by the second stage set for January 24-25. The semi-finals have been fixed for Thursday, January 28 in Luanda and Benguela, with the third place match slated for Benguela two days later.

Luanda will host the final on Sunday, January 31. The tournament will see 32 matches played overall. Egypt are the current holders of the African title.

Odindo Ayieko, Goal.com