Confederation of African Football (CAF) and Leagues
About CAF
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is one of the six continental confederations specializing in football management in the African region. This is the highest level organization representing the football of the countries of the black continent and at the same time is the legal representative, professional, and the voice of football of the countries of the African region. The African Football Confederation is under the management of the FIFA World Football Federation and is the only organization responsible for operating and organizing major international tournaments in the African region.
The member countries of the African Football Confederation are all countries with extremely strong sports backgrounds, especially with a great love for football. Not only that, the teams representing these countries all have respectable relics in the regional and international arena.
In order to compete for the World Cup, the African Football Confederation teams are required to go through very difficult and competitive qualifiers. CAF has always been known to be a transparent and fair organization, so the tournaments they host are often very strict, which is how CAF maintains their reputation and credibility in the international arena, as well as bringing to each World Cup the most powerful teams. African football does not develop as strongly as European football due to the lack of investment in infrastructure and professional qualifications, that is why CAF was established as a mark of great transformation and development. professional football in Africa with the goal of bringing the football of this continent on par with the football of other continents.
To qualify for the World Cup, teams must go through three qualifying rounds. Round 1 will include the team ranked on the FIFA football rankings from 27-54, the 14 strongest teams after round 1 will advance to round 2. In round 2, 14 winners from round 1 will compete. together with the first 26 teams according to the FIFA rankings to select 10 teams for the 3rd round. In the 3rd round, out of those 10 teams, depending on the number of tickets to the final round of the World Cups, the respective winners will be selected.
History of CAF
The Confederation of African Football was established on August 19, 1957, in which the first members contributing to the creation of this organization were Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and South Africa. In fact, the start of building a prestigious organization dedicated to African football did not originate from the countries of this region, but it was proposed by Portugal in 1956. After joining The FIFA congress in Lisbon, Egypt, Sudan, South Africa and Ethiopia after the proposal of Portugal met again and made the decision to organize the first Africa Cup of Nations, and also from here, the African Football Confederation was established.
So far, the Secretariat of CAF’s headquarters is located in Egypt, which is also the country that brought home the African championship trophy for the first time since this season appeared. Currently, CAF is the supreme organization that decides every tournament as well as orientates the development of African football.
Presidium
The three honorary presidents of the African Football Confederation are three of the four founding representatives of this Federation, namely Mr. Abdel Aziz Abdallah Salem (Egypt), Mr. Abdel Halim Mohamed (Sudan), and Mr. Ydnekatchew Tessema (Egypt). Ethiopia). Each country will replace the President of the Federation from 2017 to the present time, Mr. Patrice Motsepe (South Africa) is in charge of the chair of CAF.
General secretaries
Youssef Mohamed (Egypt): 1957 – 1958.Mustafa Kamel Mansour (Egypt): 1958 – 1961.Mourad Fahmy (Egypt): 1961 – 1982.Mustapha Fahmy (Egypt): 1982 – 1999.Sodiq Kola (Nigeria) : 1999 – 2017.Amr Fahmy (Egypt): 2017 – present.
Member States
Currently, the African Football Confederation has a total of 54 member countries. Depending on geographical location and level of uniformity in football development, CAF is divided into 5 regional federations, including the Council of East and Central African Football Associations (CECAFA), Council of Associations South African Football Federation (COSAFA), West African Football Union (WAFU), Union of North African Football Confederations (UNAF) and Union of Central African Football Confederations (UNIFFAC). All the countries of the African region are members of the CAF and belong to different Regional Federations depending on their geographical location.
Position of football teams in CAF
African football is not as developed as European football, but the teams from the black continent still have high positions in the FIFA rankings, as evidenced by their always being in the top 32 teams participating in the round. World Cup finals through the ages. Prominent in the rankings and always present in the World Cup rounds are the following teams: Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Nigeria, Morocco, Senegal and Cameroon. These teams are always formidable opponents to the European and American teams, compared to the Asian teams, they are slightly better in terms of physical and level.
Tournaments under the management of CAF
The Confederation of African Football always presides over and hosts tournaments in Africa, among which are tournaments such as the Africa Cup of Nations, the National Football Championship. Africa, Africa Youth Championship, Africa U-17 Championship, Africa Women’s Cup, Africa U-20 Women’s Championship, U-Women’s Championship 17 Africa, Africa Indoor Football Championship, African Beach Soccer Championship, All-Africa Games. At the club level, there are tournaments such as African Club Championship, CAF Confederation Cup, CAF Super Cup, CECAFA Club Cup.
Vision and Mission of CAF
The Confederation of African Football was established with the vision and mission of creating a modern, professional and thriving African football in the international arena. The mission is to develop an honest, passionate, and fair football, with a vision to promote and bring the image, tradition, and love of African football to the world. With that mission and vision, the African Football Confederation is focusing every day on investing in and providing technical infrastructure and a consistent development path for African countries. In addition to developing and regulating football, maintaining the integrity and rule of football, promoting local and youth football, and conducting top-level competitions, the AFC also works closely with its Member Associations and key stakeholders to realize its objectives.