From Doha, CAF president Patrice Motsepe highlighted the commercial value of African football and the audience for AFCON in Morocco, while reaffirming his support for FIFA president Gianni Infantino, just weeks before the elections.
Patrice Motsepe took advantage of the platform of the “Global Perspectives: In Doha” event, organised by CNN with Media City Qatar, to take stock of African football. On Thursday, the CAF president asserted that the game is undergoing major structural transformations which, he said, have strengthened its commercial value and its appeal to investors, according to QNA.
Before the audience, the South African official also reaffirmed his support for Gianni Infantino, just weeks before the elections at the head of the world governing body, according to Kawowo.
The AFCON numbers in Morocco
Motsepe cited the AFCON organised in Morocco. According to him, the competition was followed by 3.5 billion people in 180 countries, with 6.2 billion digital views, according to QNA.
He also judged that, “with better governance, the game will continue to grow”. The official also stressed that substantial investment will create jobs and boost infrastructure, women’s football and youth academies. CAF’s ambition is to see an African national team crowned world champions.
Strong backing for Infantino
On the election front, Patrice Motsepe reaffirmed his support for Gianni Infantino, whom he describes as a “very good and loyal friend”, according to Kawowo. He added that Africa unanimously supports the FIFA president ahead of the upcoming elections in a few weeks.
The CAF president also recalled that the African Nations League would be born and that subsidies to federations are rising, according to Kawowo. These arguments come ahead of the CAF general assembly, scheduled for Abuja on 21 November.
FIFA Forward and a biennial AFCON
The FIFA Forward programme has injected more than a billion dollars into African football since 2016, according to The African Mirror. The outlet cites the example of Togo, where FIFA funds around 30% of the national federation’s budget.
Asked about a possible biennial AFCON, the CAF president said that the CAF election is a good answer to that question, according to Kawowo. He also declared: “We will make the right decision”, according to Footafrica.net.