FKF Vice President Mariga appointed CHAN 2024 Draw Assistant

Former Kenyan international, McDonald Mariga, has been appointed as the CAF African Nations Championship (CHAN) 2024 finals draw assistant, with two days to go before the official draw.

Mariga is among three legends from co-hosts Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania picked to take part in the ceremony that will be conducted on Wednesday, 15 January at the Kenyatta International Conventional Centre (KICC) in Nairobi, at 8.00pm local time (17h00 GMT).

Uganda’s Hassan Wasswa and Mrisho Ngasa are the other two legends who will conduct the draw of the eighth edition of the competition to take place from February 1-28, 2025.

A total of 19 nations, including hosts Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and defending champions Senegal will be engaged in the draw to officially map out the tournament’s month-long schedule.

Wasswa, Ngasa and Mariga have contributed to the ever-growing standard of African football, and have left their mark on the game in their respective countries.

Wasswa, whose national team career spans over a decade, has been a long time servant of Ugandan football. In addition to representing the Cranes 75 times, the defensive midfielder also enjoyed a career in Turkey and Saudi Arabia before his 2021 retirement.

Tanzania’s Mrisho Ngasa is rated as one of the best players to come out of the East African nation. With a century of international appearances, Ngasa is the second most capped Tanzanian player of all time and the nation’s leading scorer with 25 goals.

With a career dating back to 2005, his highlights include playing for three of the biggest clubs in Tanzania, Simba AC , Young Africans and Azam FC.

Beyond Tanzanian borders, the former striker plied his trade with Free State Stars in South Africa before moving to Oman, where he played for Fanja before his retirement with Tanzania’s Ndanda Sports Club.

Mariga enjoyed a glittering career that included a UEFA Champions League title with Inter Milan, as well as the Serie A trophy and two Coppa Italia wins. He also won the FIFA Club World Cup in 2010.

The former defensive midfielder was the first Kenyan to play in the UEFA Champions League, and also represented clubs in Sweden and Spain. He won 40 caps for the Kenya national team, scoring five goals.    

He is the older brother of another Kenyan legend, Victor Wanyama.

TotalEnergies CAF African Nations Championship 2024 Confirmed Qualified Teams: 

Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda (all co-hosts), Morocco, Guinea, Senegal, Mauritania, Niger, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Sudan, Zambia, Angola and Madagascar. Two more teams will be confirmed for the finals.