A 32-man list has been released containing the names of referees and assistant referees for the 2023 African Cup of Nation (AFCON) tournament scheduled for Cote d’Ivoire.
The list seen by Truetells Nigeria on Tuesday (today), however, has generated reactions as no Nigerian was included to play a part in the officiating.
The list published on Tuesday on the official website of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) contained the names of 32 centre referees, 33 assistant referees, and 2 VAR officials.
The likes of the host country, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Algeria, South Africa, Egypt, Tunisia and the Benin Republic, all had at least a referee representing their nations in the AFCON games, except Nigeria.
Recall that the 2023 AFCON will commence on January 13, 2024, and end on February 11, 2024.
See the full list of referees for the AFCON tournament below:
Twenty-two countries out of 24 expected participants have so far booked their place in the 2023 AFCON, Naija News reports.
The hosts of the tournament, Ivory Coast, were the first to book their place and are already seeded for Group A automatically.
Teams like the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Algeria, Senegal, and Morocco whose final AFCON qualifier was postponed due to the earthquake in the country last weekend, have already booked their place in the tournament ahead of September.
On Thursday, Ghana, Angola, and Tanzania joined the qualified teams after thrilling qualification rounds.
The latest addition to the qualified 2023 AFCON teams is the Gambia. They drew with Congo Brazzaville in the earthquake-wrecked Marrakesh on Sunday night.
As it stands, there are still two spots left for grabs, and those spots will be filled up after the Cameroon vs. Burundi clash on Tuesday, September 12. Two of Cameroon, Namibia, and Burundi are expected to fill the remaining spots.