10 Things You Need To Know About Africa’s Cup Of Nations

January 8th, 2010 | by: chris | View Comments

It’s right around the corner, you know. And by ‘right around the corner’, we mean that quite literally: turn the corner of this week into next week and you’re there. The first game kicks off Sunday evening when tournament hosts Angola take on Mali.

So with time at a premium, let’s get right down to ten things you need to know for the African Cup of Nations.

i. You can call it whatever the hell you want.

CAN 2010, African Cup of Nations or any mildly dyslexic variation, AFCON, AfCoN – they all work. And this year’s are simply being called Orange African Cup of Nations. Not because they’ve decided to replace color with years – which would be sweet: “we won the blue one!” – but because it’s being sponsored by the French telecommunications company. The official website even has it listed as COCAN 2012.

Provided you’re somewhere in the region, people will get it – no need to be pedantic.

ii. Ivory Coast are the favorites.

Ivory Coast 15/8
Ghana 5/1
Cameroon 5/1
Nigeria 7/1
Egypt 9/1
Algeria 12/1
Tunisia 16/1
Angola 16/1
Mali 20/1
Gabon 50/1
Burkina Faso 66/1
Togo 66/1
Zambia 66/1
Benin 100/1
Malawi 125/1
Mozambique 200/1

[Via William Hill]

This comes as no surprise as Cote d’Ivoire are widely considered the best team on paper. What does come as something of a surprise is that Egypt are all the way down at 9/1 despite being two-time defending champions. They’ll miss out on the African soil’s big tournament in the summer, sure, but they’ve always done poorly on the global scene yet done exceedingly well within the continent. So that may not be the worst bet…

iii. Burkina Faso & Togo would like a redraw, please. Or: clear your calendars at 1930 Angolan time on the 15th.

The odds indicate the group match between CdI and Ghana is being considered a preview of the most likely (sort of) final. They also indicate Burkina Faso and Togo are mighty pissed.

v. Angola’s timezone is the same as Central European time.

So that’s…

GMT (UK): -1
EST (US): -6
PST (US) -9
Tokyo: +9

For anywhere else in the world, check World Time Zone.

vi. Only 5 of the 16 coaches are native to their country.

And the nations are: Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Malawi and Nigeria. (An equal number were born in France.)

While Africa would probably like to go in the other direction, as in more native coaches, this may be the new trend for international coaches. After all, international football isn’t so much about patriotism as it is the results, and sometimes the best option has a funny looking passport (see: England). Some countries may take longer than others – Italy, Germany and Brazil will fight to the death – but eventually, we might see a European Championships sporting a similar ratio or worse.

vii. Angola’s mascot is way cooler than South Africa’s mascot.

The Palanquinha is inspired on the Giant Black Antelope, a national symbol and an ex-libris of the national fauna for being a specie that cannot be found elsewhere in the world.

Symbol of strength, dynamism and vitality, the Black Antelope is represented in a dynamic and determined manner. Colours used are influenced by the equipment of the Angola national football team as well as the national colours black, red and yellow.

And watch out when it sneaks up on your car asking for autographs without even washing the windows.

viii. The stadium where the final is being held, the Estadio 11 de Novembro (bonus points for translation), has been open since, oh…last Tuesday.

ix. You need to pay attention to the flight of the ball during the tournament.

Why? Simple: they’re using the adidas Jabulani, the very same ball being used in the World Cup during the summer, but with an Angolan design.

Every keeper in the world should be paying attention – if they don’t already have a ball or seven – and you should too.

If only to impress your friends during the World Cup: “watch it dip……….here.”

x. It’s okay to be ignorant.

One of the most beautiful things about this for the tournament is that for the non-African or non-African fan, it’s an immersion into a different culture and different teams which we’re not used to seeing. Most of us here watch more football than we’d like to admit – though some are holding it dear for an eventual insanity plea – but African football doesn’t get a ton of priority, if any at all – partially due to a lack of exposure. Sure, I’ve seen some games, but ask me about Nigeria’s tactics, Benin’s fullbacks or how well Mozambique plays through the channels and I’m at a complete loss. This is a chance to watch the teams we’re rarely exposed to while being that young fan who knows little, but just loves the game. And because of this it may be, World Cup aside, the most pure tournament in all the land.

Cup of Nations info:

* Watch it online
* Matches & Groups
* Squads
* Africa on the World Cup Blog