AFCON 2023: Host nation Ivory Coast win dramatic tournament

euronews (in English)

The 34th edition of the tournament attracted record TV viewership.

Transcript

00:00 Ivory Coast are Africa's latest champions after a dramatic final against Nigeria.

00:06 But it wasn't plain sailing for the elephants.

00:08 So let's take a look at how the revamped AFCON 2023 shaped up.

00:13 Hello and welcome to Football Now from Doha.

00:21 The African Cup of Nations has come to an end and once again it has not disappointed.

00:26 The 34th edition of the tournament attracted record television viewers

00:30 and there was plenty of highlights along the way.

00:33 Let's remind ourselves of how it all played out.

00:35 Despite winning the opening match of the tournament against Guinea-Bissau,

00:39 Ivory Coast lost their following group stage games and took dramatic action,

00:43 sacking their manager Jean-Louis Gasset midway through the tournament,

00:47 sparking a marvellous recovery, but more on that later.

00:51 Elsewhere in the groups, holders Senegal got off to a flying start,

00:54 taking the maximum nine points from the group games,

00:57 while Mauritania made it out of the group stage for the first time in their history.

01:01 Into the knockout stages and Morocco, fresh from their World Cup semi-final appearance in 2022,

01:07 suffered a shock exit at the hands of South Africa.

01:10 The journey continued for Bafana Bafana right until the semi-finals,

01:14 where they went out at the hands of Nigeria on penalties.

01:18 From a South African point of view, it's been a long time since I've seen people

01:22 really get behind the national team in this way.

01:25 They've dusted themselves off after years of hardship.

01:27 They've gone out there, they've done their business,

01:29 and they were led well by Ronan Williams, the captain and the goalkeeper of the tournament,

01:33 and Hugo Bruce, who's, despite the challenges, has soldiered on.

01:36 You know, it was a magical story, and there was hope we'd get to the final,

01:40 but it wasn't to be, unfortunately.

01:42 The Ivory Coast saw off the Democratic Republic of Congo in the other semi-final,

01:46 teeing up a dramatic final in Abidjan.

01:49 The host came from behind and won the trophy thanks to a late Sebastian Hela goal.

01:53 Just two years after his career was in doubt due to a testicular cancer diagnosis,

01:58 he delivered the ultimate prize for his country.

02:01 Sebastian Hela is a player who has had a lot of ups and downs.

02:05 You know, a lot of people throw in the towel.

02:07 You start thinking about life after football, you start thinking about your family,

02:11 you start thinking, "Well, if I'm going to go through this,

02:13 do I still want to continue to play this beautiful game?"

02:15 And he said, "Look, I'm going to fight through, I'm going to fight through,

02:17 I'm going to come out on the other side," and I tell you, he has come out fighting.

02:20 I think we can only take our hats off to him,

02:22 and for him to essentially score in the final as well,

02:25 I mean, it doesn't get a lot better than that.

02:27 What a beautiful story. Football is filled with these two movies,

02:30 but it doesn't mean that it diminishes the sort of impact that it has

02:33 on us as everyday people and on everyone.

02:35 You know, we love the game of football.

02:37 Yes, it was a miraculous story for the Ivory Coast who won the tournament

02:41 despite deciding to sack manager Jean-Louis Gasset midway through the competition.

02:46 The bold move proved to be a stroke of genius though,

02:49 as their interim coach, Amers Faye, inspired the Elephants to a historic third title.

02:55 It's more than a fairy tale, honestly.

02:57 I still can't believe we did it.

03:01 It's extraordinary. It's a huge chance.

03:04 We were miraculous. We went after the cup because we didn't give up,

03:11 because we fought until the end,

03:13 and we showed that we were men and that we knew how to bounce back despite the hard shots.

03:18 When it went into Faye's hands, everyone was pretty much unsure.

03:21 He never had previously managed a senior side.

03:23 He was not the man many people thought could turn the situation around.

03:27 He's had an incredible journey himself.

03:29 He played for Ivory Coast, he played in the Premier League, he played for Reading,

03:32 and he spoke about this coming of winning at home,

03:36 feeling like revenge because he had to stop playing at a very young age himself.

03:40 So he knew from when he retired, he wanted to win trophies as a manager.

03:43 He just didn't know that this incredible story would have to display.

03:46 Everyone completely took the host out of the running after their poor start

03:50 and thought, "Wow, this guy is just not going to take us forward."

03:52 So I think it's another story of investing in home-grown talent as well.

03:56 And he's shown it's possible,

03:58 and it's just a wonderful story to watch as the mother Atakan as well.

04:01 After being runners-up in 2022,

04:04 Egypt had hoped to go one step further this time around,

04:07 but disaster struck in the group stages when their star player Mo Salah

04:11 picked up a hamstring injury.

04:13 They went on to lose to the Democratic Republic of Congo on penalties,

04:17 only further highlighting Salah's importance to the Pharaoh's chances of success.

04:22 I think for Egypt he plays a slightly different role.

04:25 Rabeliti is much more heavily relied upon in comparison to Liverpool.

04:29 So I feel in context it's a much bigger blow to Egypt when he's at.

04:32 It didn't really work out this tournament for him.

04:34 He was a lot more defensive going forward.

04:37 You can't win an AFCON by yourself.

04:39 But in terms of this particular tournament,

04:42 the minute Salah was injured, it just looked very bleak.

04:45 It didn't look like there was many ways for us to make it to the final,

04:49 and that's when we were kicked out.

04:51 Well, according to CAF president Patrice Msepe,

04:54 nearly two billion people tuned in to watch AFCON over the course of the campaign,

04:59 making it the most-watched edition of the tournament in history.

05:03 With more eyes on the continent than ever before,

05:06 and the new African Super League having been launched in October,

05:09 is the profile of African football currently at an all-time high?

05:13 I'm a veteran of nine AFCONs, and this is undoubtedly the biggest ever.

05:20 In terms of the revenue, in terms of the eyeballs, in terms of the viewership,

05:24 in terms of interest in the African game, this is undoubtedly the biggest and the best.

05:29 The best organised as well, in terms of how they go, the entire continent,

05:34 keeping an eye on African football for the very first time.

05:37 I think undoubtedly the biggest, the best ever AFCON that I have witnessed,

05:41 and the records and the stats are there for all to see.

05:44 It was just out of this world, in my opinion.

05:47 Yes, it was another thrilling tournament in Africa,

05:50 and congratulations to the Ivory Coast on their third AFCON title.

05:54 Do let us know what you thought of the tournament using the hashtag #FootballNowAFCON,

05:59 and we'll see you next time. Bye for now.

06:01 [Music]

06:05 (keyboard clacking)

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