The 2016 African Nations Championships otherwise known as CHAN 2016 kicked off on Saturday in Kigali with Tunisia and Nigeria the early favourites to lift the 4th edition of the competition. The tournament will hold in Rwanda from 16 January to 7 February 2016.
These are the facts you should know about the three weeks event.
#1 Defending champions, Libya, are not part of the competition in Rwanda. They failed to qualify having been knocked out at the qualifying stages.
#2 Two former champions, DR Congo (2009) and Tunisia (2011), are however in the thick of the mix in Kigali and aiming to add to their silverware.
#3 Nigeria is making only are second appearance at the CHAN. In her debut appearance in 2014, the home based Super Eagles claimed the third place gong.
#4 No Mikel Obi, no problem! Only national team players who are playing in their country's own domestic league are eligible to compete in the tournament.
#5 Of the 16 teams that qualified for this competition, only Zimbabwe and Dr Congo have appeared in every single edition of the African Nations Championships.
#6 Only Guinea is making her first appearance at CHAN 2016.
#7 Ethiopia is the only team still looking for their first ever CHAN point.
#8 Nigeria's first game in the competition is against Niger, a team the Super Eagles have never lost to in a competitive fixture
Imhons Erons
[post_ad]source: soccer net