Nigeria, Benin Submit Joint Bid For AFCON 2025

Nigeria and Benin on Friday beat the deadline for the submission of hosting bids for AFCON 2025, Prime Business Africa reports.

There were expectations that Ghana would form a three-pronged hosting bid with Nigeria and Benin, but the West African nation has been sidetracked as its neighbours (Nigeria and Benin) joined the likes of Algeria and Morocco to signify interest.

Meanwhile, Algeria is also interested in the hosting rights and has submitted a bid as well.

President of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF), Salah Bey Aboud, traveled to Cairo, Egypt, to finalise the submission of the bid himself. “I am currently in Cairo and I have just officially submitted Algeria’s candidacy file for CAN 2025 “, he told the press in Cairo during an engagement.

Meanwhile, Morocco have also successfully filed their bid for the hosting right.

South Africa, Senegal, and Zambia are also interested in hosting the 2025 AFCON but are yet to finalise the application.

They have until the close of business on Friday December 16, 2022, to complete the process or abandon the plans.

Nigeria and Ghana co-hosted the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations, with the opening ceremony holding in Ghana and the final at the Lagos. National Stadium.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria were losing finalists after an ouster through a controversial penalty shootout against Cameroon.

Africa Footballer of the Year winner in 1997, Victor Ikpeba, had scored from 12 yards but lack of goal line technology at the time conspired to rub the country of a likely Nations Cup glory.

Izuchukwu Okosi

Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc. In October 2004, Okosi joined Complete Communications Limited, publishers of Complete Sports newspaper and Complete Football magazine as a reporter and later script writer for the Complete Sports studio. He worked there for 13 years until October 2017. Okosi also worked various times as Correspondent, Content creator and Editor at Sports Market International Magazine, Opera News, All Nigeria Soccer Media and Iconic Media Watch. He also undertook freelance writing gigs for some local and international organizations. Okosi is a member of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Association of Movie Producers (AMP), Association of Voiceover Artistes of Nigeria (AVOA), Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ). He has been part of cast in some Nollywood movies and radio dramas including Blood Money 2, Scores To Settle, Dead End 2, Another Campus Tale and Battle Line. Aside mainstream media and the entertainment industry, he has interests in scouting/unearthing of talents in the sports and creative sectors, exports business and property development.