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During the 33rd edition of the African Cup of Nations football held in Cameroon, Stanislas Frenkiel, sports historian and creator of the YouTube channel “Temps de sport”, exclusively transmits his in-depth analyzes to us. Here are his first impressions on the spot: he “retains, above all, great matches”, however, he deplores the “quite disappointing level of disorganization, 60 years following African independence. Even that the referees can stop a match in the 85th minute , then at the 89th. Seeing dead people around the stadiums is still something quite surprising”. On the other hand, he was delighted to discover “such a local Cameroonian enthusiasm which is a land of football”. He believes that Cameroon, the organizer and the host country, remains, at this stage, the favorite: “He is the favorite since he is already playing at home”. Mr. Frenkiel takes the opportunity to offer us a little historical perspective: “Since 1957, the first African Cup of Nations in Sudan, 34% of the organizing countries, the host countries, have won the CAN, have been to the end. So it’s still one out of three competitions. When we organize the competition, we have an advantage”, he explains: “the support of the public, the referees, perhaps, a little more conciliatory, and then an energy, and then we already know the places, the stadiums”. In this kind of exceptional situation, where all the stars are aligned for the local team, Mr. Frenkiel believes that “Cameroon will go all the way, and that would be great for the Cameroonian people as well, and it will be a great tool for political legitimation on a continental scale, as well as on a global scale, for President Paul Biya who has been in office since 1982”.
