Ghana's chance in hosting 2017 AFCON alive as CAF decides against unscheduled naming

Ghana are still in the chance of hosting the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations after CAF on Saturday decided against the an unscheduled naming of the host for the competition.

Kenya, Algeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali and Zimbabwe are interested in replacing strife-torn Libya as the 2017 hosts ahead of a September 30 deadline for bids.

Top CAF chief were considering naming Algeria as hosts of the competition because of the availability of facilities after it joined the bid to host the 2017 and 2019 bids.

However, CAF binned the idea and instead made the unscheduled announcement of naming Guinea at the host

The countries including Ghana will make their bid presentations before a decision is taken on the host of the competition which is just three years awau.

Each country will make a 30-minute, eve-of-vote presentation early next year and the executive committee also have a report on each candidate to help them decide.

A five-man inspection team will spend several days in each of the countries seeking to host the tournament.

Among the facilities under the Caf microscope were stadiums, training grounds, hotels, hospitals and media centres, plus road, rail and air links.

The Nations Cup has been spread around the continent recently with southern, central, western and northern countries among the previous five hosts.

Ethiopia were the last east African hosts in 1976 with cash-strapped Kenya withdrawing as 1996 hosts and South Africa taking over.

The 2017 Cup of Nations hosts will be named only next year even though the 2019 and 2021 hosts are known.