The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has agreed on January 9, 2022, as the start date for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon.
The tournament which was moved to next year after COVID-19 interrupted the international football calendar is expected to end on February 6, 2022.
The Executive Committee of CAF unanimously approved the dates after a meeting on Wednesday. The meeting was chaired by new CAF President Patrice Motsepe.
Meanwhile, the draw for the groups at the competition has been slated for June 25, 2021.
“The Executive Committee unanimously approved the proposed dates for the organization of the draw (June 25, 2021) and the Total Africa Cup of Nations 2021 Cameroon final tournament (January 9 to February 6, 2022),” a statement on CAF’s official website read.
Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Comoros, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Sudan, Tunisia and Zimbabwe have qualified with one more spot to be fielded by Benin and Sierra Leone.
The game between Sierra Leone and Benin had to be postponed due to COVID-19 positive cases. The match has been scheduled for the next international break which is between May 31 to June 15.