AFCON: ‘Colonial’ FIFA casts shadow over Motsepe’s new era
By
Taimour Lay
Reserved for subscribers
Posted on
January 17, 2022 11:19
Opponents lambasted FIFA’s “colonialism” when decision-making effectively moved from Cairo to Zurich in the summer of 2019. Now that CAF is formally standing on its own two feet, Patrice Motsepe still faces criticism for cleaving too closely to outsider interests.
It is easy to forget that this was meant to be Issa Hayatou’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON); a swansong for his likely retirement, a gift to his fellow countrymen after three decades at the helm of the African Football Federation (CAF).
Instead, it is Patrice Motsepe’s first tournament as CAF President following his unopposed election last March, with the South African mining magnate promising a