The Confederation of African Football, CAF, has omitted Nigerian officials from list of referees and assistant referees that will officiate at the upcoming 2024 African Nations Championship.
CAF named 75 match officials for the biennial competition which is designed for players who feature in their countries domestic leagues.
The list includes 26 referees, 26 assistant referees, and 18 Video Match Officials.
The officials are drawn from 30 member associations.
Morocco is the nation with the most representation on the 75-man shortlist with seven of its citizens making the cut. The sizable number of Moroccans means the North African nation has at least one representative in every officiating capacity at the first edition of the biennial championships to be hosted by three countries.
Morocco’s Mohammed Guezzaz will head the list of Instructors for the event, with Jammy Sikazwe of Zambia, Evarist Menkouande from Cameroon, Djibouti’s Mohamed Hussein Ali and Boubaker Hannachi completing the list.
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Algeria also has a good number of the officiating positions at the event despite the fact that they have consistently refused to put together a team to participate in the continental showpiece.
Five referees from Algiers, four from both Cameroon and co-hosts Uganda along with three from South Africa were also picked.
In the regional breakdown, 20 of the officials are North Africans. While 20 others have West African roots.
This selection reflects the growing excellence of African refereeing, with top officials chosen from across the continent.
CAF has over the years overlooked Nigerian referees for major competitions.
This edition of the CHAN will be hosted by three countries Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The competition will run from 2 to 30 August, 2025.
(Editor: Paul Akhagbemhe)
