Kamel Abu-Ali, the President of the Tourism Investment Association in Hurghada, which will host the 2019 CAF Awards ceremony, said on Saturday that the CAF has announced that a large number of global and African football stars will attend the ceremony.
The 28th edition of the CAF’s annual football awards will take place on January 7 at Citadel Azure in Hurghada, according to CAF officials.
The winners will be announced during the ceremony in the presence of a number of prominent African sports icons and public figures.
Abu-Ali named the stars invited to the ceremony, which from Egypt are Mahmoud al-Khatib, Hassan Shehata, Wael Jumaa, Ahmed Fathi and Ahmed Hassan.
The rest are Brazilian Cafu, Argentian Juan Sebastián Verón, French Youri Djorkaeff, Portuguese Nuno Gomes, Saudi Sami al-Jaber, Japanese Nakata, Ivorian Didier Drogba, Ivorian Yaya Toure, Angolan Flavio, Cameroonian Roger Milla, Senegalese El Hadji Diouf, Ghanaian Abedi Pele, Zambian Kalusha Bwalya and Nigerians Daniel Amokachi and Nwankwo Kanu.
Participants in the 2019 CAF Awards ceremony started arriving in Hurghada to attend the celebration.
The president of the CAF Ahmed Ahmed arrived in Hurghada, accompanied by former Barcelona star Samuel Eto’o, to follow preparations for the reception of the CAF party – with Eto’o scheduled to present the ceremony.
On Monday, the Hurghada International Airport will receive the stars nominated for the African Player of the Year Award – including Egyptian international and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah and his teammate, Senegalese Sadio Mane alongside Algerian Riyad Mahrez from Manchester City.
Abu-Ali told Al-Masry Al-Youm that the floating theater on the Red Sea has been completed, and that the celebration tent is also finished.
He even teased that one of the brightest stars in the world will be a guest, keeping the name a surprise.
A group from the CAF has been formed alongside the “Pick Albatros” group, which organizes and hosts the ceremony, to put the finishing touches for the ceremony, Abu-Ali said.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
