MONROVIA, Montserrado – The West Africa Football Union Under-20 Nations Cup will kick off on Tuesday, April 24 at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex, with Liberia taking on Ivory Coast in the opening match.
The tournament, which is expected to be played for 12 days, will feature eight countries that are paired in two groups. Host Liberia will be joined by Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, and the Gambia.
According to a release by the Liberia Football Association via its official Facebook page, the tournament will be played at two venues within Montserrado – the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville and the Antoinette Tubman Stadium in central Monrovia. A total of 16 games are expected to be played from the group stage to the final stage.
The tournament will begin with two games on the opening day that will involve countries in Group A. Liberia, the host nation, will welcome Ivory Coast in the first game before Sierra Leone takes on Guinea Bissau.
The matches in the first and second rounds will be played at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex before the final group games be played at separate venues at the same time to avoid match-fixing. The group games will be played between the 24th and the 29th of April before a two-day break to the semifinals matches, which will be played on May 2. The tournament will close on Saturday, May 5 when the third place and final matches will be played.
Participating countries have arrived in the countries and will depart on Sunday, May 6.
Featured photo by T. Kla Wesley, Jr.
