The Confederation of African Football has said that participating countries for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Cameroon can travel with a maximum of a 28-man squad.

The 33rd edition was delayed due to Covid-19 but look set for Cameroon next year from Sunday, January 9 to Sunday, February 6, 2022, with the usual three substitutes per match.

The last Afcon in Egypt was 23-man squads, but this increment came due to fear of Covid-19 cases. The continental body says the five additional players is optional and not mandatory.

CAF release reads: On the occasion of the upcoming final tournament of the TOTALENERGIES Africa Cup of Nations – Cameroon 2021, we would like to provide you with the following decision:

Number of additional players – The Organizing Committee of the Africa Cup of Nations has decided to increase the number of players to 5 additional players. Consequently, the list of players could be increased to a maximum of 28 players. This decision was taken to allow the participating teams have a larger squad list for the competition in case some players test positive for COVID 19.

On the other hand, please note that your federation will bear the cost of the international travel as well as the accommodation of these additional players on the final list. In view of the above, we would like to inform you that the registration of the 5 additional players is only an option and not an obligation. 

Number of substitute players: Concerning the number of substitutions, CAF will apply the law of three substitutions per match (+ 1 additional substitution in case of extra time) during the final tournament of the Africa Cup of Nations.

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The Gambia women national are through to the second round of the TotalEnergies Women’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifier with a 3-1 aggregate over Sierra Leone.

Having won the first left 2-0, the Female Scorpions played to a 1-1 draw with their counterparts at the multi-purpose Independence Stadium in Bakau on Monday. 

The host team took the lead in the 24-minute through their Spanish based player Fatoumata Kanteh, but Sierra Leone rallied to draw parity via a Zainab Macauley 54th-minute goal.

The Gambian ladies who won the first leg at the Antonette Tubman Stadium will face the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon in February.

It was inevitable that the Sierra Leone women’s national team was facing a tough task trying to overturn the two-goal deficit a week ago.

Meanwhile, Cameroon completed the double over the Central African Republic to progress to the second round of the TotalEnergies Women’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Yaounde on Sunday, October 24.

The Indomitable Lionesses went through after winning both legs 3-0 aggregate

Connect with us @football_sierra, on Facebook/ Instagram Football Sierra Leone, writer Lamin Turay in Freetown.