The last time Ivory Coast clichéd an AFCON trophy was in 2015. However, on Sunday 11^th, 2024, they emerged victorious after beating Nigeria 2-1 in the finals.

While their counterpart had mounted a spirited fight since the tournament, the tables were turned at the Alassane-Ouattara stadium in Abuja.

That miraculous win against the Super Eagles left punters, football fans, and analysts with more questions than answers. How could a team, once on the verge of dropping out of the tournament at the group stage, win the trophy?

So, what motivated the Elephants to reach this level?

ü Increased Confidence

One factor that can make a team win in any match is confidence. Thankfully, The Elephants exuded more confidence when playing against the Super Eagles. When it came to players, each of them participated actively in the game, thereby making their team emerge as the overall winner of the AFCON 2023 trophy.

On the other hand, the Super Eagers appeared to be nervous. That could be attributed to the fact that winning the AFCON trophy is no mean feat. The other factor is that they were outside their own country. Regardless of the reason for the Super Eagle’s nervousness, the Elephants took advantage of it and did the unimaginable.

ü Change of a Football Coach

After Ivory Coast lost to Equatorial Guinea in a match that ended 4-0, the hope for the Elephants to win the AFCON 2023 was significantly dashed. The Ivorian Football Federation dismissed Jean Louis Gasset and hired Emerse Fae, a former player, to salvage the Elephants.

Emerse Fae was appointed on January 24^th, 2024, and has been in charge of the Elephants since then. His stewardship saw Ivory Coast defeat Senegal in the Round of 16. Further, Ivory Coast defeated Mali during extra-time in the quarter-finals and beat DRC Congo in the semi-finals. He successfully guided his team to bag the trophy on the final day, one significant achievement that will remain in history books.

ü  Decorated Squad

The Ivory Coast team is quite decorated, with most of the squad members playing in elite leagues across the globe. This level of experience gave them the much-needed skills to outsmart opponents. From S. Aurier, W. Bolly, D. Fofana, and S. Adingra to the man of the moment, S.Haller, nearly every member of the Ivorian squad players in European top leagues.

ü Home Advantage

The chances are usually high in AFCON that the host team can bag the trophy. And it makes complete sense because, by default, they will have more fans cheering them towards victory. The Ivory Coast fans indeed showed up for the Elephants during the good and hard times and cheered them from the first minute to the final day of the tournament. This is an advantage the Super Eagles lacked and saw them suffer the expected fate—losing.

ü Inspiration From The Greats

If there’s one thing the Elephants enjoyed, it was the support they received from legends like Drogba. While the former Chelsea striker took a back seat from the management role in the squad, his presence in the stadium and probably in the dressing room made a big difference. He was available during all the matches and freely shared his opinions on social media to support his country. The coach, Emerse Fae, is also a former player for Ivory Coast, and he took advantage of this to inspire his team to success.

Final Words

Ivory Coast’s AFCON 2023 win was a historic comeback 8 years after they held that title. From exuding confidence to having an elite squad, there are many reasons why Ivory Coast bagged the AFCON 2023 trophy. It remains to be seen whether Ivory Coast will retain that title or let it slip off their hands in the next AFCON tournament. Let’s wait and see!

Giannis Antetokounmpo headlines a seven-player African cast set to shine at the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis.

Leading the Eastern Conference as captain in his eighth All-Star appearance is Giannis Antetokounmpo of Nigeria. He will be joined by Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat, who has Nigerian roots, in his third All-Star appearance.

The action-packed weekend will begin to February 16 and will feature the Panini Rising Star event on February 17, showcasing talents like Victor Wembanyama (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Bilal Coulibaly (Mali), and Oscar Tshiebwe (Democratic Republic of the Congo).

Victor Wembanyama will also participate in the Kia Skills Challenge alongside other stars on February 18, while a special NBA vs. WNBA three-point contest will feature Steph Curry and Sabrina Ionescu for the first time.

Additionally, the AT&T Slam Dunk contest will see Matt McClung defending his title against new contenders.

Former NBA Academy Africa alumni Thierry Serge Darlan (Central African Republic) and Babacar Sane (Senegal) will showcase their talents in The NBA G League Up Next event.

The 2024 Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Global camp will also take place during the All-Star Weekend, featuring top high-school-age prospects, including representatives from Angola, Mali, Senegal, and South Sudan.

Adding to the excitement, the NBA All-Star Game will feature Nigerian figures Eniola “Korty” Olarenwaju and Tobi Bakre, South African personalities Bontle Modiselle, Robot Boii, and Kama Mphela, showcasing the intersection of African entertainment and basketball.

Last year’s All-Star Game set the stage with a vibrant halftime performance by Burna Boy, Tems, and Rema, taking Afrobeat culture to new heights.

The 2024 Busan ITTF World Championships got off to a poor start for African teams, with five countries getting dissapointing outcomes on the first day.

The opening matches of the 2024 Busan ITTF World Championships saw disappointing results for African teams, with Algeria, South Africa, Madagascar, and Nigeria facing defeats in both the men’s and women’s events held in South Korea.

Algeria faced tough opposition, with both their men’s and women’s teams suffering 3-0 losses to Chile and Austria, respectively.

The Algerian women’s trio of Amina Kessaci, Lynda Loghraibi, and Malissa Nasri struggled against their Chilean counterparts, while the men’s team, led by Mehdi Bouloussa, couldn’t overcome the challenge posed by Austria.

South Africa, replacing Tunisia, also had a rough start, as they were defeated 3-0 by Iran in their opening match.

Meanwhile, Madagascar’s youthful team surprisingly lost by a narrow margin, a 1-2 defeat against the Czech Republic, as they were unable to match the experience of their European opponents.

For Nigeria who faced pre-tournament setback with the withdrawal of Quadri Aruna and the late arrival of Bode Abiodun, were walked-over by Japan in their opening match.

Nigeria now faces a challenging situation with only tow Tennis players available for the ITTF World Championships.

The other African team, Egypt,  will kick off their campaign against Romania, while their female team will take on the Czech Republic on Saturday, February 17, 2024.

Nigeria’s team-leader and veteran Table Tennis player, Segun Toriola expressed disappointment at Aruna Quadri’s absence, describing it as a significant setback for the team.

However, he remains optimistic about Nigeria’s chances of progressing from the group, despite the challenges they face.

Toriola said: “I am aware that the Japanese are afraid of Aruna and their coaching crew have been worried about their formation of their team but when the news filtered that Aruna would not be coming, they were a bit relieved that they have a bye to the next game.

” But we can give up even though it is a big blow to the team here in Korea and we will not give up hoping that we can progress from the group,” the former African champion said.

Meanwhile, defending champions China narrowly avoided defeat against India, coming back from a 2-1 deficit to win 3-2 against the Indian team led by Manika Batra, as they began their title defense in Korea.

Manchester City and Real Madrid got their UEFA 2023/24 UEFA Champions League first leg round of 16 ties off a brilliant starts thanks to wins away from home.

While champions Man City beat Copenhagen 3-1,
Madrid pipped Leipzig 1-0.

Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden were the scorers for City.

For Madrid, Brahim Diaz’s goal, in the 48th minute was enough to seal the win for Madrid.

The first leg round of 16 games will continue on Wednesday.

In Italy, Lazio will welcome Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich to the Rome Olimpico.

In France, Paris Saint-Germain will entertain Spanish side Real Sociedad.

A grateful Nigeria nation has showered National Honours and material gifts on players and officials of the Senior Men National Football Team, Super Eagles for reaching the Final of the Africa Cup of Nations championship concluded in Cote d’Ivoire on Sunday.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu told members of the team at the Council Chambers, State House, Abuja on Tuesday: “I am very proud of you. This country is proud of you because you gave us great excitement. Your performance is confirmation that we can achieve so much as a nation if we all come together and unite for positive purposes, despite our diversity.”

“You worked very hard and navigated your way through to the Final. You lifted our spirit; you made us proud and you made us smile.”

The President then conferred National Awards of Member of the Order of the Niger (MON) on all the players and their officials, as well as President of NFF, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and the NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi.

All the 25 players and their officials are now also proud owners of a flat each in the Federal Capital Territory, as well as a plot of land each also in the Federal Capital Territory.

President Tinubu described defender and vice captain William Ekong, named Player of the Tournament, as a ‘warrior’ and named Africa Player of the Year, Victor Osimhen as ‘Trojan horse’. He praised the Federal Ministry of Sports and the Nigeria Football Federation for their efforts in preparing the team for glory.

Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh described President Tinubu as the biggest sports-supporting President that Nigeria has ever had, and lauded the Nigeria Football Federation for ensuring that for the first time in a long time, Nigeria has returned from a major sporting competition without any crisis or complaints of any kind by the athletes.

Responding, Ekong, on behalf of the entire, thanked the President for the awards and gifts: “I wish we are here presenting Your Excellency with the trophy, but that is not the case despite giving our very best to the campaign. We have two people in this team who have gold medals, each sitting on either side of me (Ahmed Musa and Kenneth Omeruo). In 2019, we won bronze medals. This time, we won silver medals. I believe that at the next competition, we will strike gold.”

Also at the occasion were Vice President Kashim Shettima; Alhaji Tajudeen Abbas (Speaker of the House of Representatives); Chief George Akume (Secretary to the Government of the Federation); Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila (Chief of Staff to the President); Dr. Jamila Bio Ibrahim (Minister of Youth Development); Ezenwo Nyesom Wike (Minister of the FCT); Mrs Tinuke Watti (Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Sports Development), Board Members of the NFF and other top government officials.

In his post-match press conference, Super Eagles head coach Jose Peseiro addressed several factors that he believed contributed to the 2-1 defeat suffered by the Nigerian national team in the final of the 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday.

Following a series of solid performances in the build-up to the final at Stade Alassane Ouattara, Ebimpe, many tipped the Super Eagles to win a fourth AFCON title in Abidjan.

However, that was not the case as the hosts came from a goal down to secure a 2-1 victory that earned them their third AFCON title following earlier successes in 1992 and 2015.

Bad day at the office

Reflecting on what turned out to be a disappointing final, Peseiro told reporters in Ebimpe that the Super Eagles, among other things, were nervous.

“Cote d’Ivoire were the main favourites for this tournament; they have very good players, wingers, and very fast wingers. Quality wingers in attack, they are a good team but they were almost out, I don’t know if that situation did change the pressure. They were fantastic; they didn’t play with pressure, and they didn’t feel nervous, but on the opposite, my players, my team felt nervous more than their opponents.”

Peseiro also admitted the Super Eagles lost too many balls, which was evident in the final tally of 61 per cent to 39 per cent ball possession in favour of the Elephants.

“We lose many balls; I don’t know why; I don’t think my players were comfortable today. From the back, we lose too many balls, and with that, you allow the opponent to create many chances, and they attack and attack.”

Despite the shortfalls highlighted, Peseiro insists his players deserve to be praised for how far they came and how they gave their best shot at winning the 2023 AFCON tournament.

Super Eagles goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali has expressed apologies to Nigerian supporters following the team’s defeat in the 2023 African Cup of Nations final.

Nigeria lost to host Ivory Coast in a thrilling final on Sunday.

The Eagles led for most of the game but later surrendered their one-goal lead to hosts Ivory Coast.

Following the game, Nwabali said the squad will accept full responsibility for the loss and he described the loss as a “frustrating end.”

He however appreciated the country for its support during the competition

He wrote on his Instagram handle: “A disappointing and frustrating end. I deeply apologise to Nigerians. I was once a fan, still a fan and I understand how it feels to give you a disappointing night.”

“We take full responsibility. Thanks for the whole support till the end. I love you all”.