ZIFA delegates led by President Philip Chiyangwa, Acting CEO Joseph Mamutse and technical Director Wilson Mutekede have joined 400 other international football experts in Rabat, Morocco for a Caf African Football symposium.
The two-day event scheduled for July 18-19, 2017 at Palais des Congres (International Conference Centre Mohammed VI), Skhirat, a suburb of Rabat,is expected to form the continental blueprint for the development of the game going forward.
New-look Africa Cup of Nations and CAF Champions League competitions could emerge this week from the discussions in Morocco that will include FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
A two-day CAF symposium begins Tuesday in Rabat and officials, coaches and former stars have been tasked with plotting the future of the popular sport in the continent.
On Friday, a CAF executive committee meeting will precede an extraordinary general assembly involving the 55 member associations, where changes could be adopted.
Former stars invited include Joseph-Antoine Bell of Cameroon, Hossam Hassan of Egypt, Rabah Madjer of Algeria, Austin “Jay Jay” Okocha of Nigeria and Badou Zaki of Morocco.
Leading national coaches Florent Ibenge of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Herve Renard of Morocco and Claude le Roy of Togo are also expected to attend.
When Malagasy Ahmad Ahmad won the CAF presidency ahead of long-serving Cameroonian Issa Hayatou last March, he vowed to thoroughly review African football.
The Morocco gathering is the fulfilment of that promise with the timing, frequency and number of qualifiers in the Cup of Nations likely to be among the hottest topics.
According to Caf, the symposium will focus on issues related to the various Caf competitions, particularly its format, periodicity and organisation.
The symposium programme includes the following seven topics, African Cup of Nations (the competition), African Cup of Nations (the host country’s specifications), Interclub Competitions, Youth Football, Football and Development, Communication and Media, and Marketing and TV.
The event will be followed by a meeting of the Caf Executive Committee and an Extraordinary General Assembly on July 20 and 21 which will gather together 56 Caf member associations.
Hosting the biennial tournament in January and February has long been a source of frustration for European clubs, especially in England and France, where many Africans play.
