MAHLATSE MPHAHLELE | Jury out if Motsepe on the money moving Afcon to four-year cycle

Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Patrice Motsepe says recent changes are for positive restructuring of the game on the continent, but such alterations will always spark mixed and raw emotions from lovers of the sport across Africa.

As soon as Motsepe announced a raft of resolutions by the Caf executive committee (exco) in Rabat on Saturday ahead of Sunday’s kickoff of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), including that the Nations Cup will move to a four-year cycle after 2027, football followers were divided.

Afcon, which has been largely disrespected by Europeans despite benefiting from its immense talent, is the jewel in the crown for African football and the continent’s leaders in the sport have to take correct decisions and guard it jealously.

Motsepe and his exco say they mean well with these drastic reforms that caught everyone by surprise. Many football lovers are not entirely convinced.

They believe Caf is pulled by the nose by powerful Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who they suspect is behind a move that in their opinion will benefit Europe. The reason for the suspicion is Infantino, who wields unimaginable power in world football, had in the past suggested this change to the calendar.

Emotions are running high from both sides of the argument at the moment but the reality is we will have to wait and see over a period of time if this is the right thing for African football.

With most things in life, change is often uncomfortable and met with a lot of skepticism by those who prefer the status quo to remain and are scared of the unknown. Then you have those who could be easily classified as brave like Motsepe because of their unsatiable appetite to freshen things up and take a different direction armed with hope.

There is valid reason for the Doubting Thomases to voice their reservations about this change but in equal measure those who agree with Motsepe must be listened to.

There is nothing much anyone can do about this for now because a resolution has been taken by football’s bosses, but debate is important because Caf belongs to all Africans. Caf does not only belong those connected individuals in beautiful suits who sit in airconditioned offices, but it to the Average Joe in Dakar, Nairobi, Khartoum, N’Djamena, Gaborone and Libreville who loves football.

I am in the middle because I agree with some of the points from the left and some from the right because this is a complex matter that is going to be part of the discourse for many months to come. Right or wrong, Caf leadership have taken a decision and they are going to look like geniuses if it works or they are going to be lynched if it fails spectacularly.

Some of the points advanced by those who are in line with Motsepe and Caf argue that finally African football is being repositioned to align with the global calendar. They say this move will go a long way in alleviating the scheduling conflict with Europe that has existed for many years, leaving players caught in endless club versus country battles.

African players have been stuck between club commitments and Afcon tournaments during the season and a four-year cycle aligns better with major competitions like the Euros and Copa América. While Afcon is underway here in Morocco leagues across the world are continuing and this leaves African players in conflict with their clubs, who are at critical stages of the season.

Supporters of the change point out it will give Afcon more global reach and attention by not being held while European teams are active and that the new African Nations League — a copy of the version for national teams first launched in Europe — will lead to competitive fixtures, which will lead to more broadcast revenue.

Their argument, which cannot be discounted, is the move could be strategic for global alignment, in boosting commercial revenue and go a long way in protecting players and establishing a competitive calendar.

Those who disagree with Motsepe and Caf also strongly advance their arguments, insisting African football does not have to be aligned with Europe or South America. They further argue the change will mainly benefit the interests of European clubs, who for many years have disrespected African players whenever they wanted to return home to represent their countries in the world’s third-largest continental trophy.

They believe African Nations League will not help much because the so-called smaller nations will be dominated by the bigger countries in their regions.

This is certainly an interesting development for African football and robust discussions are welcomed, but only time will tell if these reforms are going to benefit African football.