Eritrea’s AFCON place in doubt after players disappear in South Africa

Eritrea played in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying tie against Eswatini last month, their first appearance in the tournament since 2007 [Katie Stratman/Imagn Images via Reuters]

Eritrea’s participation in the Africa ‌Cup of Nations preliminaries is in question after seven of their 10 local footballers disappeared following their victory in Eswatini ⁠last month.

The players went missing after Eritrea completed a 4-1 aggregate triumph over Eswatini on March 31 – a result that secured them ⁠a spot in the group-stage qualifiers for the continental showpiece.

From the 24-member squad that participated in the qualifying tie, only 10 were locally-based players, of which just three returned.

The seven players are believed to have disappeared when the national team arrived in South Africa en route from Eswatini to Eritrea via Egypt, an official of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) told the AFP news agency.

“This incident is a mystery. Eritrea beat Eswatini on March 31 in Lobamba and no one seems certain what happened thereafter,” he said.

“We believe all the players left Eswatini for South Africa. But when the travelling party landed in Cairo, seven players were missing.”

Recently appointed Eritrea coach Hesham Yakan, a defender in the Egypt 1990 World Cup squad, chose 24 players, including 14 based abroad, for the two-leg preliminary qualifier against Eswatini.

His selection included Eritreans based in Australia, Egypt, England, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines and Sweden.

Ali Suleiman from Egyptian top-flight side Ismailia Electricity Club scored three goals as Eritrea won 2-0 and 2-1 to qualify for the main qualifying phase, which will comprise 12 four-team groups.

The first leg against Eswatini was staged in the Moroccan city of Meknes because Eritrea does not have an international-standard stadium.

It was the first Cup of Nations match involving Eritrea since 2007. Subsequently, they competed in three World Cup qualifying competitions and several regional tournaments.

The seven missing players reportedly include goalkeepers Kibrom Solomon and Awet Maharena and defenders Wedeb Fessehaye, Yosief Tsegay and Nahom Awet.

Veteran midfielder Medhane Redie and striker Amanuel Benhur were the other defectors, joining dozens of Eritrean footballers who abandoned national teams when in other African states.

Those who returned to Asmara were captain Ablelom Teklezghi, fellow midfielder Nahom Tadese and striker Romel Abdu.

Victory over Eswatini proved a surprise success for the lowly-ranked Eritrea, considering they had not played an international match for six years.

It put them into the draw for the ⁠group-stage qualifiers, along with the five winners of other preliminary ties. They will join Africa’s 42 top-ranked teams, who will be divided into 12 groups of four teams each.

The group qualifiers are to be played between September and November to determine the teams that will qualify for the 2027 Cup of Nations finals in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

A history of player defections

During trips outside the country, players from Eritrean both senior and underage national teams regularly disappeared and sought asylum.

Players and other team members defected after matches or tournaments in Angola in 2007; Kenya in 2009; Tanzania in 2011; Uganda in 2012; Botswana in 2015, following a World Cup qualifier; and Uganda again in 2019.

The United Nations estimates that about 80 Eritreans involved in football, including players, coaches and officials, have defected during the past 20 years.

Indefinite military service after completing schooling is cited as the main reason for the defections from the East African country.

Eritrea has been governed by President Isaias Afwerki since gaining independence from Ethiopia in 1993, and human rights groups consistently describe his rule as “highly repressive”.

During a state visit to Kenya three years ago, Afwerki said such allegations were “fantasy”.

Eritrea did not allow teams to travel outside the country ⁠since members of its under-20 side fled to Uganda in 2019, but had a change of ⁠heart when they entered the 2027 Cup of Nations.

A further sign of Eritrea looking to emerge from its self-imposed isolation came in February, when its football federation president, Paulos Weldehaimanot Andemariam, ‌was elected to head the Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations, a longstanding regional body that organises club and junior competitions.

But that could all be in the balance now after the embarrassment of the player defections.

George Ghebreslassie, an Eritrean exile who runs a nonprofit organisation supporting Eritrean refugees, said the disappearance highlighted the dire situation in the country.

“It shows the kind of situation we have in Eritrea. We thought things would change, but nothing has changed,” he told the Reuters news agency.