… attests to highest number of media interest
… says football unites people from different races, ethnic groups and religions
In his first pre-match media conference ahead of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) opening ceremony, the President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Dr. Patrice Motsepe reiterated the relevance of the independence, integrity, as well as the quality of African referees.
The CAF 2023 AFCON pre-match media parley held on Friday, January 12 in Abidjan.
According to Dr. Motsepe, “The independence and the integrity, as well as the quality of African referees is very important. And also we are investing in making sure the qualities of our referees are world class.
“And the VAR (they were talking about assistant referees have issues), also look after them. It’s also an opportunity not just to tell them some of the plans we’ve escaped, but l think more importantly for me to listen from the referees how we can make sure they really perform world class.”
The CAF President noted, “The number of media interest in the world is the highest ever, and sometimes in life, we got more than six thousand applications from media all over the world.
“We’ve got the tough football media houses and companies from world class, something we are not just thankful for.
“And we’ve increased the price money as well. Part of increase in the prize money is to make sure we consistently and continuously, with more money coming in, the governance and the ethics, transparency as well as the compliance with CAF and FIFA statuses is crucial.
Dr. Motsepe further expressed, “Our focus is to ensure that African football is globally compared to others, it’s world class and it’s as good as the best in the world.’
“But we also recognize an important functional football, and the beauty of football.
“To use football to unite our people. People who come from different races, different ethnic groups and different religions,” he added.
