November 17 – A star-studded line-up featuring pop stars and politicians are set to attend the draw for the 2010 African Nations Cup being staged by tournament host Angola in Luanda on Friday.
The event, featuring Congolese artist Papa Wemba and other Angolan singers, is being held at a shiny new glass-and-steel convention centre in the purpose-built southern suburb of Talatona.
Angola’s long-time President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos is also due to attend an event that African Football Confederation (CAF) President Issa Hayatou will also be at.
Representatives from the 16 qualifiers for the tournament, which is due to begin on January 10 and end with the final three-weeks later on January 31, will also be present to witness a split into four groups from which the winners and runners-up advance to the quarter-finals.
The 15 teams who have qualified to play in Angola are Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, defending champions Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria, Togo, Tunisia and Zambia.
They will be joined by the hosts in the tournament which is being held for the first time in the event’s 53-year history in Angola, the second-largest petroleum and diamond producer in sub-Saharan Africa.
The 32-fixture tournament will be played at four new Chinese-built stadiums in Luanda, Benguela, Cabinda and Lubango.
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