Ebimpé affair: those involved contradict the government

The abandonment of the friendly between Ivory Coast and Mali on 12 September 2023 because of a waterlogged pitch and a flooded stadium is still making waves. The Ivorian government, meeting in a Council of Ministers on 13 September, the day after what has been described as a national disgrace, decided to close ranks with everyone in the chain of responsibility in this affair: from sports minister Danho Paulin to ONS director Mariam Yoda, everyone has been spared. "A match was staged yesterday at the Alassane Ouattara stadium in Ebimpé as part of a test. These full-scale tests make it possible to assess all the infrastructure. And in yesterday's test, one essential problem was identified. It concerns access and security for the 60 thousand spectators, which the technicians believe will be resolved once the access roads under construction are finished. However, an exceptional and unforeseeable thunderstorm led to the match being stopped. It should be noted that the stadium's facilities are not, at this stage, being called into question. This exceptional situation does, however, allow us to make the necessary adjustments to deal with any similar cases. In any event, it justifies holding the AFCON in January, the month when it rains least in our country. (...) You cannot have heads roll because of a natural phenomenon; it was exceptional rain, and you cannot punish anyone for that.", said Amadou Coulibaly, the government spokesman, on leaving the meeting of state.

So, all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds. Yet even before the rain, everyone could see the numerous clumps of turf being ripped up with every touch of the ball. A lack of reaction from the state has stoked public anger even further. After the general outcry, on social media and all across the country, players have spoken out.

When we sang the national anthems at the Ebimpé stadium in Ivory Coast. pic.twitter.com/9lX2lbe3pH

— Kamga Kôtòpî Mignon🌀 (@yemargent) September 12, 2023

"The pitch is our office"

Max-Alain Gradel, one of the national team's vice-captains, banged the table. He spoke out on his social media accounts on 13 September. "The only sad note is the pitch. We have to be serious, it is not worthy of Ivory Coast. We are footballers and the pitch is our office, and it is not worthy of Ivory Coast", Gradel said angrily. Before him, Jean-Louis Gasset also did not hold back on the subject. "In terms of the pitch, in Bouaké we had a storm before training, to the point that we thought we would not be able to train because there was so much water. And half an hour later the pitch was playable again because it had been well drained. With the Ebimpé pitch, the water is not absorbed, and when you know we may be playing crucial matches in this lovely stadium, there is some thinking to be done", said the Frenchman about the Ebimpé pitch.

Read also: AFCON 2023: Ebimpé stadium, the pitch of shame!

For Mali midfielder Yves Bissouma, the best course was to stop the game because of the state of the surface: "We would have liked to carry on with the match to give you a good spectacle, but the state of the pitch did not allow it, and the best thing was to protect the players that we are, to avoid injuries and plenty of other negatives." Present at the stadium when the downpour sent everyone running, spectators and VIPs and VVIPs alike, the president of the Ivorian Football Federation merely regrets the image shown to the world but remains confident. "It was a test match to see how the stadium is and everything else. This rain showed a catastrophic image of my country because everyone was watching this match, but things will quickly be taken in hand. I have confidence in our authorities", Idriss Diallo said positively. Ivory Coast were handed the hosting of the 2021 AFCON, which was pushed back to 2023, in 2014, nine years ago already. Four months before the event, they are still dithering over the delivery of the infrastructure.

Sanh Séverin

• The pitch at Ebimpe Stadium is in fact not hybrid.

Let's listen together: pic.twitter.com/hO19CWFoMr

— Chroniques 225 (@Chroniques225) September 14, 2023