LUSAKA, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Authorities in Zambia on Wednesday revealed that they have formally written to the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to be given the rights to host the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
Minister of Youth and Sports Moses Mawere said the formal application followed a request made by President Edgar Lungu in his congratulatory letter to the new CAF President CAF President Ahmed Ahmed.
The Zambian leader had appealed to CAF to consider giving the country the rights to host the event and that the government was ready to work on its infrastructure for the event
The Zambian minister said when the head of the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) Philip Chiyangwa paid a courtesy call on him that Zambia were ready to host the event after successfully hosting the 2017 Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations which the country won.
Zambia have never hosted the senior Africa Cup of Nations tournament. The country failed to secure the hosting of the 2019 edition after it was awarded to Cameroon.
Meanwhile, the COSAFA chief said Zambia's request will be considered by as CAF reviews the decisions that were made by the former president of the continental soccer body.
He said he was on a tour of the region to see which country in southern Africa was ready to host the event. Enditem
