Why African World Cup qualifiers have been postponed
Harambee Stars Captain Michael Olunga (right) walks out of the pitch as Liverpool and Egypt forward Mohamed Salah waves to his fans after their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani on March 25, 2021.
What you need to know:
- These matches will now be played in October.
- The winning teams in Kenya's pool will join nine other group winners from the second round for the final phase of the competition from where five of Africa's representatives at the World Cup in Qatar will be known.
- The World Cup will be held between November 21 and December 18, 2021.
The 2022 Confederation of African Football (Caf) 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification matches have been rescheduled to October.
Caf on Thursday confirmed this development in a statement and attributing the changes to the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The Caf Emergency Committee, in consultation with Fifa, decided to postpone the Caf qualifiers for the Fifa World Cup Qatar 2022 that were due to be played in June 2021 after taking into consideration the current challenges caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the need to ensure the optimal playing conditions for all participating teams," the statement read.
"The qualifiers will now take place in the existing windows of September, October, and November 2021, and March 2022."
CAF also announced it was preparing standard rules to be used by all the participating teams.
"Caf is reassessing protocols and processes to enhance the implementation of Covid-19-related protocols, including specifically focussing on pre-match testing which had been the source of some challenges in precious windows."
This is the third time matches in the competition have been rescheduled.
Harambee Stars, under the guidance of coach Jacob 'Ghost' Mulee are seeking a first- ever appearance at the World Cup, which is the world's premier sporting competition.
Stars have been pooled alongside neighbours Uganda, Rwanda, and West African bigwigs Mali, and were set to commence the qualification campaign against Uganda Cranes in Nairobi on June 5 before travelling to face the Amavubi in Kigali a week later.
These matches will now be played in October.
The winning teams in Kenya's pool will join nine other group winners from the second round for the final phase of the competition from where five of Africa's representatives at the World Cup in Qatar will be known.
The World Cup will be held between November 21 and December 18, 2021.
