The 32nd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations begins in Egypt on Friday, June 21, with the host nation hoping to make up for the disappointment of their early exit from the World Cup last summer.
Led by Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah, who travelled to Russia but was evidently not fit to participate, the Pharaohs are chasing their eighth title but face stern competition from the likes of Senegal, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Cameroon, who are the defending champions from the 2017 edition in Gabon. They face Zimbabwe in the tournament curtain raiser this weekend.
The competition, which has traditionally been played in January and February but has been moved to the European off-season to accommodate the schedules of the majority of its players, was initially due to start six days earlier, however, due to the close proximity of the end of Ramadan, which finished on June 3, a decision was taken to move the tournament back.
It means the final of the competition will now be played in Cairo on July 19, eating significantly into the pre-season plans of many of Europe’s top clubs, where a majority of the key stars play their football.
Nevertheless, this promises to be a unique showcase for the African game, which can claim the spotlight without too many other distractions. Kick-off times will be earlier in the day than those of the Copa America and Gold Cup, while the Women’s World Cup in France is nearing its concluding stages.
As such, there is bound to be significant interest in the competition, which will be available to view in the UK.
Every match will be broadcast live of Eurosport 2 throughout the competition, meaning that Sky subscribers can access the channel by switching to 411, Virgin Media customers can find it by going to 522 (HD) or 524 (SD) (426 and 425 respectively in Ireland), and BT TV users can find it on 436 (HD) or 413 (SD).
The matches will be available to stream via Sky Go or Virgin TV Anywhere.
Eurosport’s on-demand web app is a further option. Although this requires a separate subscription, it does offer a plethora of other sports to users, with extensive tennis coverage notably.
