Ebola May Force The Africa Cup Of Nations Host To Be Decided By Lottery

The Africa Cup of Nations, the biannual tournament to crown the continent's top soccer country, is scheduled to kick off in three months. As of now, it'll be held in Morocco, but with West Africa currently suffering the worst Ebola outbreak ever, the idea of hundreds of thousands of people descending on the host nation doesn't seem very dope at all.

Morocco, located in North Africa, has so far evaded the epidemic that has already claimed some 4,500 lives, and understandably would like to keep it that way. And though they haven't exactly reneged on hosting the three-week tournament, they'd like it at least postponed until the virus is contained.

"Football is just a game and we can't play with the health of Moroccans," Morocco health minister Houssaine Louardi, said earlier this week. "There is no zero risk when it comes to Ebola."

These are good, solid takes. The Confederation of African Football, however, heard Morocco's request and responded with "nah."

"CAF has registered (Morocco's) request and wishes to state that there are no changes of the schedules of its competitions and events," the CAF said in a statement.

This tournament is happening whether Morocco pulls out or not. So the CAF is looking for volunteers. They're currently approaching other nations to host, and if multiple countries agree, they'll draw the winner out of a hat in the world's suckiest lottery.

Right now Ghana, South Africa, and Egypt look to be interested, which, ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, but more countries could be coaxed. I guess we'll see in the coming weeks. The CAF has banned soccer in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea due to the outbreak.

[ Washington Post/ BBC]

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