South Africa is set to host the African Nations Championship (CHAN), a tournament exclusively for players competing on the African continent. The competition will feature 16 qualified nations and is scheduled to take place from January 11 to February 1, 2014.
Gordon Igesund, the coach of the South African national team (Bafana Bafana), emphasizes the importance of public involvement for a successful performance in the tournament. He acknowledges the galvanizing effect of strong fan support, considering the home advantage as a key factor. However, Igesund also recognizes the tough opponents in their group, which includes Nigeria, the recent African Cup of Nations (CAN) winner, and Burkina Faso, the unfortunate finalist.
“We have been drawn into a difficult group, and playing the African champion will be a real test of nerves, a good psychological test for our players. We are playing at home, and the team that we are going to put together for CHAN is not called upon to play sidekicks,” said Igesund during an inspection visit.
The five stadiums selected to host the championship are Cape Town Stadium, Athlone Stadium, Free State Stadium, and Peter Mokaba Stadium.
The nations qualified for the competition include South Africa (as the organizing country), Burkina Faso, Burundi, Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Libya, Mali, Mozambique, Mauritania, Morocco, Nigeria, DR Congo, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
