AFCON organisers allowing fans in for free to fill empty stands: source

Organisers at the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco are allowing supporters in for free after kick-off in matches where stadiums are not full, a Confederation of African Football source told AFP.

The Group F game between Cameroon and Gabon on Wednesday in Agadir kicked off in front of almost empty stands but the ground filled up significantly over the course of the first half despite incessant rain.

The official attendance was later announced as 35,200 inside a venue which can hold over 45,000.

There have been similar scenes at numerous matches across the opening days of the competition, even leading to confusion over the attendance figures themselves.

The crowd at Tuesday’s Group D encounter between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Benin at Rabat’s Al Medina Stadium — which filled up considerably over the course of the game — was initially announced as 6,703 before later being corrected to 13,073.

The CAF source indicated that organisers, in agreement with African football’s governing body, were opening stands around 20 minutes into games to allow fans gathered outside to enter without paying.

Filling stadiums is an important issue for Cup of Nations organisers in Morocco, for which a successful hosting of the tournament is key as it builds towards the 2030 World Cup to be jointly held in the North African country, Spain and Portugal.

CAF’s official ticketing platform on Thursday showed seats available for almost all remaining group matches for prices starting at 100 dirhams ($10.96).

The only matches shown as sell-outs were hosts Morocco’s games against Mali on Friday and Zambia on Monday, as well as Algeria against Burkina Faso on Sunday and Algeria versus Equatorial Guinea next Wednesday.