A year without football
A handful of fans cling to the wire fencing outside of Mauritius’ new sports centre at Cote d’Or. Inside is a sight hardly seen on the Indian Ocean island for the last year: a football match.
And not just any game; a vital 2023 Africa Cup of Nations preliminary qualifier between the home side and Sao Tome and Principe. The winners go to the group stage and a guaranteed six matches with some of the continent’s major players. The losers are left with friendlies and regional tournaments.
Financed by China and Saudi Arabia, the Cote d’Or National Sports Complex is the impressive new home of Mauritian sport with a pool, athletics track, judo hall and football ground with a top notch artificial surface.
The site’s first international was just three days earlier, when Mauritius lost the “away” leg of their AFCON qualifier to Sao Tome. Sao Tome’s home ground is not certified by FIFA as
