Is there a tournament more disrespected than the Africa Cup of Nations?

2021 AFCON will have 24 participating countries

The tournament will kick off on January 9, 2022, in Cameroon

Ian Wright wants the world to respect Africa’s biggest competition

Former England international, Ian Wright has hit out at what he believes is the unacceptable and widespread disrespect towards the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The 2021 AFCON is set to begin on January 9 in Cameroon and will see the best African players all over the world compete against each other in their national colours for the coveted prize, with many European clubs set to lose their star players when they link up with their national sides from January 3.

The 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, which was initially scheduled to be played between June and July 2021 will kick off on January 9 due to the Coronavirus pandemic which necessitated the postponement.

The 2022 AFCON has come under intense discussions with many (Europeans) calling for it to be cancelled while other associations such as the World Leagues Forum and the European Clubs Association were reluctant to release the players for the tournament if FIFA had not intervened.

Reacting to these unnecessary complaints about the AFCON, the Arsenal legend has slammed the detractors as he stressed that Africa’s biggest competition needs to be given the respect it deserves as he feels the tournament has been looked down on for far too long.

“Is there ever a tournament more disrespected than the AFCON? The coverage is completely tinged with racism.”

We played our Euros across 10 countries in the middle of a pandemic and there’s no issue, but Cameroon, a single country, hosting a tournament is a problem?’ Ian Wright asked in a viral video sighted by GhanaWeb.