Exclusive "Foot Africa": Tom Saintfiet blasts the lack of respect shown to AFCON

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Foot Africa

·6 December 2025

Exclusive "Foot Africa": Tom Saintfiet blasts the lack of respect shown to AFCON

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Tom Saintfiet's outspoken criticism

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Mali head coach Tom Saintfiet of Belgium did not mince his words as he condemned what he sees as a lack of respect from the International Football Federation "FIFA" towards African football.

In an exclusive statement to Foot Africa, the former Gambia boss voiced his outrage at the decision by football’s world governing body to delay the release date of African players based in Europe for their national teams competing in AFCON, from December 8 to December 15.

A move deemed unfair by the Eagles’ coach, who did not hold back in criticizing FIFA

This is a blatant lack of respect towards African football, and it’s unprofessional from FIFA. We are supposed to prepare for a tournament, but we only get 5 or 6 days. That’s not serious, and it could have harmful consequences for African national teams and for the players who play in Europe.We can’t prepare everything we want, nor can we fully implement our plans. There’s also a much higher risk of injury for the players, since there’s no recovery period. They come from their clubs with a heavy match load and have to jump straight into a demanding competition like AFCON.I believe a tournament like AFCON deserves respect. The rule of two weeks’ preparation before a tournament should apply to everyone. It’s really a shame for African football.