The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has sent a request to the British Government to provide exemptions for African Players to enable join their respective counties for the upcoming FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.

CAF published a statement on its website sighting the lack of sporting exemptions for players returning from several African countries after the international window next week.

“CAF, acting on behalf of all African Member Associations, African players and fans, has urged the British Government to urgently provide the required exemptions to enable African players to compete for their countries in the upcoming FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™️ qualifiers,” read the statement.

“CAF notes that similar exemptions were granted by the British Government to enable the attendance of delegations and officials, amongst others, at the finals of the European Championship held less than two months ago.”

Britain has placed many African countries on the red list in view of the new COVID-19 Delta Variant. This means that African players retuning from International duty will have to undergo a mandatory 10-day quarantine.

Premier League clubs unanimously agreed not to release It’s players from red listed countries for fear of their top stars missing some important games coming up on the calendar.

CAF has however, noted that the circumstances in the African countries on the red list in many cases are in fact less severe than other countries not currently on this list or for which exemptions were previously provided.

“CAF would like to reiterate that the upcoming matches will be delivered under the strict protocols developed by FIFA and applied across the world, as was the case in previous windows and continental tournaments successfully delivered without any incidents,” the statement reads further.

“These protocols have now proven beyond a doubt that they mitigate the risks involved, reflecting the success of commensurate protocols applied domestically in England and other parts of the world.”

“In light of the above, CAF has appealed as a matter of urgency, to the Football Association (FA) and the British Government that the same treatment previously applied to Europe now be extended to Africa under the principles of solidarity and equal treatment.”

Soka25east.com