Sao Tome and Principe will not participate in the qualifying group stage of CAN 2023. The island selection had however won its qualification on the ground by dismissing Mauritius in the preliminary round (1-0, 3-3). Except that the Santomeans were caught by the patrol and disqualified by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
«The Sao Tome and Principe team is accused of violating CAF Covid-19 regulations, by fielding an ineligible player in the March 24, 2022 match between Mauritius and Sao-Tome counting for the Cup qualifiers d’Afrique des Nations Total Energies 2023. The said player did not submit to the mandatory pre-match PCR test and was unable to provide the officials with a PCR test result taken within the 72-hour window required to participate in the game», Indicates this Monday a press release from the pan-African body.
As a result, “the CAF Disciplinary Jury found the Football Federation of Sao Tome and Principe guilty of not respecting the regulations of the African Cup of Nations and imposed a withdrawal on the Sao Tome team“, who will also have to pay a fine of 10,000 dollars. Drafted, Mauritius of Lindsey Rose and Kevin Bru thus joins Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau in a strong group A since the three selections mentioned were all present at the last AFCON!
