In January, Algeria is hosting the 2023 African Nations Championship, or CHAN for short. The event is officially scheduled for 2022, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it had to be moved back by six months.
The tournament has grown to include 18 national teams, all of which are made up of players from their own country. It is held every two years, alternating with the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). Even though there is a limit on the size of the team, CHAN matches count as full internationals for player caps and for the FIFA World Rankings.
Morocco has won the CHAN twice in a row and is still the defending champion. However, the team’s plane has not been given permission to fly to Algeria. Algeria broke off diplomatic ties with Morocco in 2021 because of the tensions and disagreements between the two countries. As a result, Algeria closed its airspace to Moroccan planes and flights that started in Morocco.
If Morocco drops out of the tournament and doesn’t look for other ways to travel around the travel ban, the African confederation will have to change the format of the competition at the last minute.
How does CHAN 2023 work? What’s different about it from AFCON?
The African Nations Championship (CHAN) is a tournament that started in 2009 and will take place every two years. Its goal is to help develop and promote African football. It’s a chance for players to show off their skills, and many of them get signed by big European clubs after doing well in the tournament.
The main difference between the CHAN tournament and the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is that teams can only be made up of players who are currently playing in their home country’s league. So, for example, Riyad Mahrez can’t play for Algeria because he plays for Manchester City in England and not for a club in Algeria.
FIFA still counts CHAN games as full internationals when keeping official records, counting caps, and figuring out the FIFA world rankings.
In 2009, there were only eight teams in the first CHAN tournament. But since then, the competition has grown to include 16 teams in 2011 and 18 teams in the current round, if Morocco joins.
CHAN 2023 live stream
TV channel Global TV network beIN Sports and African network SuperSport (sub-Saharan region) hold the rights to the 2023 CHAN tournament and will show games in all places where they can be seen.
The tournament can be seen on beIN Sports channels in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, and the United States.
| TV channel | Streaming | |
| USA | beIN Sports | fuboTV, beIN Sports Connect |
| Australia | beIN Sports | beIN Sports Connect |
| Canada | beIN Sports | fuboTV Canada, beIN Sports Connect |
| Hong Kong | beIN Sports | beIN Sports, Now Player |
Except for one, all of the Algerian games start at either 5 or 8 p.m. In the table below, you can see how those times look in different parts of the world.
| Territory | Zone | Early kickoff | Late kickoff |
| Australia | AEDT | 03:00 | 06:00 |
| Canada | ET | 11:00 | 14:00 |
| Hong Kong | HKT | 00:00 | 03:00 |
| India | IST | 21:30 | 00:30 |
| Malaysia | MT | 00:00 | 03:00 |
| New Zealand | AEDT | 05:00 | 08:00 |
| Singapore | SST | 00:00 | 03:00 |
| United Kingdom | GMT | 16:00 | 19:00 |
| USA | ET | 11:00 | 14:00 |
Schedule, games, and teams for CHAN 2023
Algeria will host the seventh African Nations Championship in 2023. It will start on January 13, 2023, and the final will be on February 4, 2023.
Depending on whether or not Morocco will be there, there will be 18 teams from six different regions that have qualified for the tournament. Morocco, Libya, and the DR Congo are the only teams that have won the tournament before.
During the group stage, the 18 teams will be split into 5 groups. Only three teams will be in each of the other two groups. The top two teams from each group will move on to the knockout rounds (only group winner advance to knockouts).
The eight teams in the knockout stage will play a single-elimination match to determine a winner. A match for third place will also be played.
If Morocco officially pulls out—their first match in Group C isn’t until Sunday, January 15—organizers will have to make a last-minute change to the tournament’s format.
Group round
All of the games below are listed with their start times in Algerian West African Time. Use the table above to figure out what time that is in your area.
Group A table table
| Pos | Team | Pts | Matches | W-L-D | Goal Diff. |
| 1. | Algeria | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 2. | Libya | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 3. | Ethiopia | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 4. | Mozambique | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
Group A schedule
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Fri, Jan. 13 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Algeria vs. Lybia |
| Sat, Jan. 14 | 13:00 / 08:00 | Ethiopia vs. Mozambique |
| Tue, Jan. 17 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Algeria vs. Ethiopia |
| Tue, Jan. 17 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Mozambique vs. Libya |
| Sat, Jan. 21 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Mozambique vs. Algeria |
| Sat, Jan. 21 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Libya vs. Ethiopia |
Group B table
| Pos | Team | Matches | Pts | W-L-D | Goal Diff. |
| 1. | DR Congo | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 2. | Ivory Coast | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 3. | Senegal | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 4. | Uganda | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
Group B schedule
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Sat, Jan. 14 | 16:00 / 11:00 | DR Congo vs. Uganda |
| Sat, Jan. 14 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Ivory Coast vs. Senegal |
| Wed, Jan. 18 | 16:00 / 11:00 | DR Congo vs. Ivory Coast |
| Wed, Jan. 18 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Senegal vs. Uganda |
| Sun, Jan. 22 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Senegal vs. DR Congo |
| Sun, Jan. 22 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Uganda vs. Ivory Coast |
Group C table
| Pos | Team | Matches | Pts | W-L-D | Goal Diff. |
| 1. | Morocco | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 2. | Sudan | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 3. | Madagascar | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 4. | Ghana | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
Group C schedule
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Sun, Jan. 15 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Morocco vs. Sudan |
| Sun, Jan. 15 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Madagascar vs. Ghana |
| Thu, Jan. 19 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Morocco vs. Madagascar |
| Thu, Jan. 19 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Ghana vs. Sudan |
| Mon, Jan. 23 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Ghana vs. Morocco |
| Mon, Jan. 23 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Sudan vs. Madagascar |
Group D table
| Pos | Team | Matches | Pts | W-L-D | Goal Diff. |
| 1. | Mali | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 2. | Angola | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 3. | Mauritania | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
Group D schedule
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Mon, Jan. 16 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Mali vs. Angola |
| Fri, Jan. 20 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Angola vs. Mauritania |
| Tue, Jan. 24 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Mauritania vs. Mali |
Group E table
| Pos | Team | Pts | Matches | W-L-D | Goal Diff. |
| 1. | Cameroon | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 2. | Congo | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
| 3. | Niger | 0 | 0 | 0-0-0 | 0 |
Group E schedule
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Mon, Jan. 16 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Cameroon vs. Congo |
| Fri, Jan. 20 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Congo vs. Niger |
| Tue, Jan. 24 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Niger vs. Cameroon |
Knockout stage
Quarterfinals
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Fri, Jan. 27 | 16:00 / 11:00 | QF1: Winner Grp A vs. 2nd Grp B |
| Fri, Jan. 27 | 19:00 / 14:00 | QF2: Winner Grp B vs. Winner Grp D |
| Sat, Jan. 28 | 16:00 / 11:00 | QF3: Winner Grp C vs. 2nd Grp A |
| Sat, Jan. 28 | 19:00 / 14:00 | QF4: Winner Grp E vs. 2nd Grp C |
Semifinals
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Tue, Jan. 31 | 16:00 / 11:00 | Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF3 |
| Tue, Jan. 31 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Winner QF2 vs. Winner QF4 |
Third Place
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Fri, Feb. 3 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Loser SF1 vs. Loser SF2 |
Final
| Date | Time (GMT / ET) | Match |
| Sat, Feb. 4 | 19:00 / 14:00 | Winner SF1 vs. Winner SF2 |
All-time CHAN winners: a list of all the winners in history
Since 2009, the CHAN tournament has been held every two years. It is now in its seventh round.
Morocco and DR Congo are tied for being the most successful teams in the tournament’s short history. Both have won it twice.
