Inaugural African Football League Kicks Off Despite Challenges and Controversies

Inaugural African Football League matches to be streamed on YouTube as number of participating teams reduced from 24 to eight and total prize money for the winner cut from $11.5m to $4m; League viewed as a potential solution to raise the quality of African football and boost revenues.

• The inaugural African Football League (AFL) has been launched with reduced participating teams from 24 to eight, and with its total prize money cut from $11.5m to $4m.
• The number of teams was cut down due to various complications but the games will run concurrently with the CAF’s Champions League.
• With no television broadcast deal as of now, all AFL games will be streamed on YouTube, which raises concerns about accessibility due to expensive mobile data connections prevalent in Africa.
• Revenues from the AFL are intended to be shared across every participating country and used to raise football standards continent-wide, although specifics still remain unclear.
• Despite initial challenges and controversies, many stakeholders view the AFL as a potential solution to raise the quality of African football and boost revenues.

4 Articles

Reuters CNA Al Jazeera Al Jazeera