Izuchukwu OkosiBritain’s pay television giant, Sky Sports, will broadcast the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire starting on January 13 in Abidjan with the final slated for February 11.
Broadcast rights for the 34th edition of the tournament has been a subject of huge debate in the sporting media with South Africa’s Supersport which had been perennial broadcast holders unable to secure the rights for the 2023 to 2025 editions.
Sky Sports also had the rights to bring the 2021 AFCON to viewers across the British isle and are expected to serve their customers with more tournaments in Africa including the women’s version of the Nations Cup later in the year to be hosted by Morocco.
Sky Sports viewers in the UK are diehard supporters of some of the finest African football stars expected to shine in Cote d’Ivoire and will be overjoyed to see their favorite players in action.
Players like Mohamed Salah (Liverpool and Egypt), Andre Onana (Manchester United and Cameroon), Mohamed Kudus (West Ham United and Ghana), Alex Iwobi (Everton and Nigeria), Nicolas Jackson (Chelsea and Senegal) and Pape Sarr (Tottenham Hotspur and Senegal) among others are already in their respective teams’ camps ahead of the big kick off.
In Nigeria, football faithful will catch up with the tournament on both Startimes TV and Afrosport TV as well as the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA).
Supersport will stiil continue their Premier League, La Liga, Serie A offerings even during the AFCON and that is a reason why fans back home in Africa are livid with the lack of efforts put forward by the Johannesburg based station.
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.
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