New African Soccer and the Champions League Semis

I know, I know. I promised 31 straight days of posts and what happened?

Anyways, I'm here.
As you know, I also write for New African Soccer magazine.

What is that? According to the site:

New African Soccer Magazine is the only monthly English language magazine and ezine dedicated to African football.

We provide all the news and views, twists and turns of the beautiful game from an African perspective. As the football world turns towards the 2010 World Cup in South Africa we want to show how much Africa has to offer, from the Premiership superstars in England and the biggest leagues in Europe to the vital grassroots of the African leagues.

We have experienced correspondents throughout the world and we deliver exclusive interviews, contributions from star players, intelligent discussion and all the latest news and views from club and international football in Africa.

Good stuff, I promise.

I wrote a piece about the African Champions League semifinals for the site's blog, which I will post here as well.

Please make sure to check out the magazine. It is chock full of information and better yet, it's free! And I write for it!!

Here's the article ... I'll be back with more tomorrow.

Zimbabwe's Dynamos Harare are the surprise package in the semifinals of the African Champions League, continuing their Cinderella run to the title with a 1-0 victory over Zamalek of Egypt on Sunday.

Substitute David Shoko scored in the 88th minute to give Dynamos the victory in Harare and set up a semi-final clash against Coton Sport of Cameroon next month.

The win lifted the Zimbabwean side to nine points from six matches, three more than Asec Mimosas of Ivory Coast, who finished third after a 2-2 draw with Group A winners Al Ahly.

The last 8 teams in the Champions League are split into two groups of 4. The winner and runner-up of these groups advance to the semis.

Dynamos' match was briefly under threat, as their players walked out of camp on Saturday ahead of Sunday's game against Zamalek because of a bonus row.

The players were demanding 3 million Zimbabwean dollars each but due to a daily cash withdrawal limit of 1,000 dollars per person in the inflation-racked country, club officials could not pay the players on time.

Eventually all was settled and Dynamos dominated the match, with Zamalek goalkeeper Abdelwahad al-Sayed making a string of fine saves.

Al Ahly made sure of their qualification a few weeks back when they defeated Dynamos in Harare, creating an unassailable point gap between themselves and the other group members.

Nigerian club Enyimba FC of Aba narrowly advanced as they suffered an embarrassing 3-0 destruction from neighboring Cameroonian side Coton Sports on Saturday.

The result should have put the former two time champions out of contention, but TP Mazembe failed to defeat Sudanese club side Al Hilal in Khartoum. Both sides played out a 2-2 draw ensuring that they both crashed out of the competition.

Coton Sports will face Dynamos Harare in the first semi-final pairing, while tournament favorites Al Ahly will face Enyimba FC in the second semi-final encounter.

The latter is undoubtedly the clash that will garner the most interest, as both teams hold the most wins in the competition now.

The first leg of the semi-finals come up October 3-5, while the second leg comes up a fortnight later.

The winners advance to a two-leg final with the victors collecting US$1m and an invitation to the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan.

New African Soccer Magazine

I'm trying to do my bit here to promote the wonderful world of African football.

Unfortunately, there's only so much I can do from my remote corner of the world (New York City).

Luckily, there are good people out there doing great work to advance the Beautiful Game in Africa.

The writers of New African Soccer Magazine have an amazing offer for readers of this blog ... check it out! It's too good to pass up!

Click HERE HERE HERE to take advantage of this special offer ...

The above link will allow you to get a FREE 3 issue pdf subscription to New African Soccer magazine.

You will also be entered into a Prize Draw to win signed shirts from DROGBA, ESSIEN, TOURE, MUNTARI, BENJANI and more of your favorite Premier League stars.
We also have iPods to give away!

When you sign up you will receive access to the NAS archive and as soon as it's ready issue 10 will be winging its way through the electronic ether to you.
ALL FOR FREE!

New African Soccer Magazine is the only magazine dedicated to African football from the Premier League stars to the grassroots of the African leagues. Take a look.

Take advantage of this offer ... Tell 'em Road to 2010 sent you ...

A First-Hand Report from Ghana

We here at 'Road to 2010' are honored to have a first-hand report of the scene in Ghana from New African Soccer Magazine's Jake Brown, who sent this to me mere moments ago. The article gives a great account of the goings-on in Ghana ahead of the 2008 African Cup of Nations.

After you read the piece, please read some info about their wonderful magazine.
Enjoy!

With just one day until kick off, Ghana is gripped by Nations Cup fever. Jake Brown reports from Accra.

You can’t escape it. The football has arrived. As the last of the teams fly into Ghana to prepare for the 28th edition of the African Cup of Nations the excitement in this football-mad country is reaching boiling point.

In the nation’s capital it seems every billboard in town is about the Cup. In Ghana’s chop bars and drinking spots, on TV and radio, people can talk of little else. The central streets are lined with the flags of participating countries and the street hawkers laden down with Nations Cup merchandise. Before a ball has been kicked Ghana is Nations Cup crazy.

The continents showpiece tournament is back in Ghana for the first time since 2000. Since then the Nations Cup has grown and grown and this edition is set to attract more attention than any before.

Over a million people are expected to travel to West Africa to watch the continents show piece tournament. As the tournament looms large, Accra is abuzz.

On Wednesday Ghana’s Black Stars touched down at Kotoka international airport in Accra. They returned from their training camp in Dubai to be greeted by 100s of devoted fans decked out in the nation’s colours of green, yellow, and red. The fans gave their players a raucous reception and set the tone for what promises to be one of the most colourful and competitive editions of the African Cup of Nations.

The anticipation is palpable but it hasn’t all been plain sailing in the run up to the kick off. Supporters have complained about a lack of tickets for some games, particularly those involving Ghana. Touts have bought many of the cheapest tickets (£2/4Cedis) for the opening match and are now selling them on at up to twelve times their face value. Meanwhile down at the media accreditation centre journalists have faced long queues and chaos as the computer systems went down on Friday.

On Sunday the tournament kicks off in Accra when Ghana plays Guinea, in the newly refurbished Ohene Djan Stadium. The nation expects. “We’ll be too strong for them. Three zero that is the score-line” says Accra resident Jerry Seamegbe. That confidence is echoed everywhere you go.

It’s been 30 long years since the Black Stars won the Cup of Nations and the country knows this is its best chance in a long time to lift the trophy. Ghana demands nothing less than a record equalling fifth title.

But if Ghana is to lift the trophy come February 10th it’ll be no mean feat. African football today boasts some of the world’s greatest talents and at least half of the nations competing will feel they have a good chance of taking the title. It promises to be a feast of football.

The teams are here, the fans are waiting, and the world’s media have arrived. As all eyes turn to Ghana, let us hope that the play on the pitch can live up to the colour and passion of the fans off it. One thing is for sure, Ghana is ready to put on one hell of a party.

INSIDE ISSUE 9 of New African Soccer Magazine:

* An exclusive interview with Ghana coach Claude Le Roy.

* Analysis of all of the groups at CAN '08 and profiles of each team at the tournament.

* Captains Corner- NAS speaks to Stephen Appiah (Ghana), El Hadji Diouf (Senegal), Aaron Mokoena (South Africa), and Nwankwo Kanu (Nigeria) in the run up to Ghana '08.

and much much more...

New African Soccer is on sale in the UK, Ghana, and Sierra Leone. Or where ever you are in the world you can get it delivered to your door - SPECIAL OFFER ON P&P FOR ISSUE 9 -see the website for more details.

Look out for New African Soccer on sale at the stadiums at the Cup of Nations.

Alternatively you can download the PDF version for just £1!

Click here here here to go to their website ...

Please support the magazine! It's a great read!

New African Soccer Magazine

In my time blogging about the world of African football, I've found resources to be limited.

Finding information can be like looking for clues in a crime case, piecing one bit of information with another to fit the puzzle together.

I'm proud to say there's a new resource for fans of African football on the Internet: New African Soccer magazine.

The magazine started some time ago and faded away. Now, it's back strong with a new team of writers and editors, eager to report on the fascinating world of African soccer.

Here's writer Jake Brown's take on the re-launch of New African Soccer magazine:

New African Soccer Magazine is the only monthly English language magazine and ezine dedicated to African football.

We provide all the news and views, twists and turns of the beautiful game from an African perspective. As the football world turns towards the 2010 World Cup in South Africa we want to show how much Africa has to offer, from the Premiership superstars in England and the biggest leagues in Europe to the vital grassroots of the African leagues.

We have experienced correspondents throughout the world and we deliver exclusive interviews, contributions from star players, intelligent discussion and all the latest news and views from club and international football in Africa.


It's a good magazine and long overdue. Much of the focus of football journalism has to do with Europe or South America. It's time for Africa to have a voice.

I'm proud to associate myself with New African Soccer magazine.

Support this voice of African football!