Niger, Ghana to host WAFU B tournaments this year

The West Africa Football Union (WAFU) Zone B has named Niger and Ghana as hosts of the regional body’s U20 and U17 Championships respectively this year.

The regional governing body confirmed the selection of Niger as the host country for the 2022 U20 Cup of Nations on Thursday.

The biennial tournament, which also serves as the qualification for the TotalEnergies U20 Africa Cup of Nations, will get the organisation’s activities underway for this year.

It will be held in the capital Niamey from May 7 to May 20, 2022.

Title holders Ghana will compete with rivals Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Benin, Togo and hosts Niger for the coveted trophy.

They will also be vying for places at the 2023 edition of the U20 AFCON.

The Black Satellites came from behind to beat Burkina Faso 2-1 to win the 2020 Championship at the Stade Charles De Gaulles in Porto Novo, Benin.

Ghana went ahead to conquer the rest of Africa at the main tournament in Mauritania, beating Uganda 2-0 in the finals in Nouakchott to win their fourth title in the history of the tournament.

The next U20 AFCON tournament will take place in Egypt from February 18, 2023, to March 12, 2022.

The top four teams will qualify to the FIFA U20 World Cup held in Indonesia later that year.

Meanwhile, the leadership of WAFU Zone B has settled on the Ghanaian city of Cape Coast – as hosts for the 2022 U-17 Cup of Nations in June.

The Zone B Championship, which serves as qualifiers for the TotalEnergies Africa U17 Cup of Nations, will be hosted in the city in the central part of Ghana.

It will be staged from Saturday, June 11 to Friday, June 24, 2022.

The tournament will feature host Ghana, defending Champions Cote D’Ivoire, giants Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin and Niger.

The participating team will vie for the trophy and tickets to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Source: CAFOnline