France and Arsenal leged, Thierry Henry, has stated that referees at the Africa Cup of Nations still fall short of the tournament’s standards.
Speaking on CBS Sports’ Golazo, the 1998 World Cup winner revealed that his fascination with the competition began with the 1988 edition in Morocco.
That year, Cameroon defeated Nigeria’s Super Eagles 1-0 in the final, with a second-half penalty from the late Emmanuel Kunde securing victory for the Indomitable Lions, then coached by Frenchman Claude Le Roy.
“I want to give you a little background about me and the Africa Cup of Nations, and I will talk about what happened in the final.
“I started to watch the Africa Cup of Nations in 1988, and it was actually in Morocco. Cameroon won against Nigeria. In the final, there were some names you would remember: Roger Milla was playing in that team, and Joseph-Antoine Bell.
“I grew up watching it because where I’m from, in my neighbourhood, that’s how it was. You watch the Afcon because of some guys we talked about, like Lakhdar Belloumi, a very famous player. In Ivory Coast, you will have Abdoulaye Traoré. His nickname is Ben Badi.
“I can also mention the guys that came to play in Europe – Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto’o, Jay-Jay Okocha. It was always a tournament I enjoyed watching because you could see skills and great teams. I also watched this competition; I will always watch it.”
The former Barcelona star also weighed in on the aftermath of the AFCON final, stating, “The reaction of Senegal leaving the field was wrong. That’s not the image you want to give; not only for African football but for any football event.
“One thing I would say, though, after watching AFCON for a very long time, is that the referees are not at the level of the show.
“A lot of the things that happen in that tournament sometimes are because of referees’ mistakes.
“And I’m not blaming the referees; I’m blaming the people who are not training them to be at the level of the football we are watching.”
The most recent AFCON in 2025, hosted by Morocco, saw Senegal’s Teranga Lions edge out the Atlas Lions 1-0 in the final. Nigeria’s Super Eagles secured their ninth bronze medal after defeating Egypt 4-2 on penalties.
