The Athletic
Players will not have to be released for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) until January 3.
The World Leagues Forum (WLF) wrote to FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) last week saying it would be “unreasonable and disproportionate” for many clubs whose domestic leagues are ongoing to release players from December 27.
FIFA’s regulations stipulate that players have to be made available from December 27 — 13 days before the tournament gets underway on January 9.
However, that will no longer be the case. Players will now be released from January 3 – after the highly-anticipated Premier League contest between Chelsea and Liverpool on January 2.
FIFA deputy secretary general Mattias Grafstrom wrote in a letter seen by The Athletic: “CAF has decided that for those players who have official club matches between the 27 December 2021 and 3 January 2022, the participating member associations in question are to be directed that these players may remain with their clubs to participate in these matches and be released after the last match…
