Reigning African Nations Championship (CHAN) champions, Morocco have pulled out of the tournament a day to kick off after failing to solve their diplomatic row with host nation Algeria which made logistics impossible.The Atlas Lions were set to commence the tournament on Sunday against two-time second runners-up, Sudan on Sunday 15 January after both were drawn into Group C alongside Madagascar and 2014 runners-up Ghana.Nine Kenya Police FC players join the General Service Unit after graduating on ThursdayThe Royal Moroccan Football Federation on Thursday 12 January released a press statement confirming their decision to pull out of the tournament after talks to secure a direct flight from Rabat, the Morocco capital to Constantine, Algeria where the Group C games were scheduled to take place.”The national team was unable to travel to the city of Constantine in order to participate in the seventh edition of the African Championship for Local Players, which will take place in Algeria from January 13 to February 4, 2023, to defend its title, which it won in the last two sessions, due to the lack of permission for its flight from the airport. Rabat-Salé in the direction of Constantine Airport by Royal Air Maroc, the official carrier of the national teams.##NAJAVA_MECA_6937564##While the national team was preparing to go to the city of Constantine on January 10, 2023 to participate in this continental championship that will start on January 13, the Royal Moroccan Football Federation, unfortunately, did not reach the final authorization within the limits of editing this communication by the Confederation of African Football to go to Algeria via lines Moroccan monarchy,” read the statement in part.The decision comes after Algeria shut down its airspace back in 2021 following a diplomatic row which according to sources arose when the host nation pledged support to Polisario, a separatist movement in the Western Sahara region of Morocco.Newest dad in town Daniel Okoth elated after bagging second assist in the seasonThe length row has been playing out since 1994 when the two counties closed their borders but tensions escalated in 2021.CHAN is a biennial tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) where the participating nations must consist of players playing in their national league competitions.
