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Zesco United
Zesco United will continue to represent Zambian interest in the CAF Confederation Cup after their passage to the quarter-finals was confirmed by CAF on Saturday.
The development was confirmed in a comminuque to the Angolan, Egyptian, Sudanese and Zambian football federations, whose teams – Recreativo do Libolo, Smouha, Al Hilal El Obied and Zesco United respectively – played in in Group C of the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup.
Zesco United were due to play their final group match with Al Hilal El Obeid on Sunday but the disqualification by FIFA of the Sudan Football Association, meant that the match would not go ahead as scheduled.
The will play Group D runners-up Super Sport United over two legs in September.
“We would like to refer to FIFA’s decision dated July 6th 2017, concerning the suspension of Sudan Football Association, and to CAF’s decision with the same date, concerning the disqualification of Al Hilal El Obeid from the Confederation Cup 2017 in accordance to FIFA’s instructions,” read the first paragraph of the communique signed by CAF Director of Competitions Division, Shereen Arafa.
The statement ended by outlining that Zesco United had finished top of the group with 10 points from six matches after being awarded a 3-0 victory over their Sudanese opponents while Recreativo do Libolo and Smouha play each other on Sunday to determine which side finishes second.
The statement clarified that the final situation was based on Chapter XI paragraphs 14 and 18 of the Confederation Cup regulations which stipulate that: “If a team withdraws after participating in the first half of the group matches, the remaining matches to be played in the said group are lost by penalty three goals to nil,” and that “The above articles are applied to teams disqualified by decisions of CAF.”