As the African Cup of Nations draws closer, the Confederation of African Football has made a major announcement for all the competing countries. While usually 23 players are registered for the competition, for this 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, the selections can contain up to 28 names. Information confirmed by the director of competitions of CAF, Samson Adamu. In a note to the 24 qualifiers, CAF said that each nation will be able to have up to five additional players, if it so wishes.
This measure was taken because of the Covid-19 crisis, to avoid teams being decimated by positive tests. However, it remains an option, with CAF leaving the choice to the coaches to take additional players or to settle for a list of 23. It should be noted, however, that all the selections that take extra players will have to pay for them. "Your federation will bear the cost of international travel and accommodation of these additional players on the final list," CAF said in its letter. As a reminder, the 2021 African Cup of Nations will be held from 9 January to 6 February 2022 in Cameroon.