CAF President Patrice Motsepe has opened the door to a unique format for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, suggesting Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania could each have an opening ceremony during the tournament.The possibility emerged during Motsepe’s tour of the three East African hosts as preparations for the first-ever tri-nation AFCON continue.##NAJAVA_MECA_9974855##Speaking in Nairobi during a visit to the Talanta Sports City, Motsepe said he wants each of the three countries to have a special moment when the continental tournament arrives in East Africa.“And some naughty person was saying, 'Whoever wins will host the opening match.'" Now, I don't know…it's beautiful. So if, as you said, we have three openings, because I want something special for all of our three countries. So we need to test."Motsepe did not provide details on what three opening ceremonies would entail or whether each would be attached to a separate match, but his comments represent the clearest indication yet that CAF is considering a departure from the traditional single-opening-ceremony format.The CAF boss also placed strong emphasis on stadium readiness, saying the venues must be fully operational and tested ahead of the tournament.Motsepe reveals when CAF will step in to mediate FKF leadership wrangles“When I come in January, it's got to be 100%. Because I need the testing of the stadiums. I need the stadiums. I'm told that Kenya wants to play Tanzania in one of the friendly matches…beautiful,” he said.He cited the recent CHAN experience as an example of why CAF is insisting on adequate preparation time, recalling how the tournament was moved after concerns over readiness.“That's why I emphasized- in fact, I overemphasized the CHAN. When there were problems and deficiencies and failures, we were not ready six months before February. I said, I'm moving it. And we had it in August, and we had the most successful chan in the history of the competition,” he added.Ian Otieno set to work under new coach in South AfricaMotsepe said the CHAN was also intended to provide valuable lessons for the much bigger AFCON tournament.“But partly why I was insistent on the CHAN was because it was going to be a valuable learning experience for the most important sporting event on the African continent. The most important. Nothing comes anywhere near that. The AFCON."AFCON 2027 will make history as the first edition of the competition to be hosted jointly by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
22