National Teams
AFCON 2023: Super Eagles among participating teams training in Saudi Arabia
By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde
As teams gear up for the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast next year, participating teams, including Nigeria have announced training preparatory camps for the tournament.
Most of the 24 competiting nations have chosen training camps in African and Asian countries.
Cameroon, Gambia, Zambia, and Cape Verde will be training in Saudi Arabia.
Two out of the four teams camping in Saudi Arabia (Cameroon and Gambia) will face off in Group C at AFCON 2023.
The Gambia will stay in Saudi Arabia from December 27 to January 5 before heading to Morocco, where a match against the Atlas Lions is planned on January 7.
2012 champions, Zambia will fly to Riyadh, with a friendly match scheduled around January 7.
Super Eagles alongside five other teams; Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cape Verde, Angola, and Guinea chose the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as their camp ahead of the competition.
The three-time African champions will play a mini-tournament against Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Nigerians will likely encounter Angola, who also chose Dubai for their training camp.
Meanwhile, Ghana will camp in South Africa alongside Mozambique. The Black Stars will undergo a 10-day training camp where the press and the public will not be able to attend their sessions.
A test match against Botswana is scheduled for Chris Hughton’s men on January 8 before flying to Abidjan.
Three teams – Algeria, Guinea Bissau, and Namibia have decided to set up camps in West African regions.
From January 1 to 10, the Fennecs will conduct their preparation stage in Lome.
Guinea Bissau will go to Mali as the Djurtus will face the Eagles on January 3 before heading to Ivory Coast on January 7, while Namibia will be in Ghana.
Mauritania and Zambia chose Tunisia as their training camp.
Tanzania will be the only team camping in Algeria.
Morocco, Egypt, South Africa, Equatorial Guinea, Tunisia, Mali, Senegal, and Ivory Coast have all decided to set up their training camps at home.
The above are in preparation for the 2023 AFCON starting from January 13, 2024.
