‘Marhaba’: CAF Unveils Official CHAN Match Ball
ADDIS ABABA – CAF, along with its technical partner Umbro, has today unveiled the official match ball for the African Nations Championship Algeria 2022 (CHAN).
The official match ball for the CHAN that is meant exclusively for home-based players has been named “Marhaba” – meaning ‘Welcome’ in Arabic.
With its design, Marhaba is inspired by the CHAN and Algerian colors, the governing body of African football CAF said.
Merhaba will first be used in the opening match of the tournament in Algiers on Friday, January 13, 2023.
CHAN’s first match will be between hosts Algeria and Libya at the newly inaugurated Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers.
New Stadium honors Mandela
The iconic Nelson Mandela Stadium was inaugurated with a friendly match against Ghana that ended goalless late last week.
The stadium, named in honor of former South African President and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela, is located in Baraki – a suburb of Algiers.
Apart from the opening match on Friday of the CHAN tournament, the venue will also host the final of the competition.
The Ethiopian national team, who are in the same group as the host nation will play their first two matches in the same Stadium in Algiers before heading to Annaba City for the final group game vs Libya.
The Walia Ibex will kick off their second participation of CHAN at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers against Mozambique on January 13, 2023 and face the hosts Algeria five days later in the same venue.
