Source: Socceragent.net

The Champions League, the UEFA Cup, Copa Libertadores, World Cup, European Championships. All of these major tournaments get copious international attention; even in the footie-starved US there is TV coverage of some if not all of this. Not so the African Nations Cup.

For the past decade I have promised myself that, come the next African Nations Cup, I would be on the sidelines, watching some of the most amazing football available on the planet, played in almost surreal atmospheres of heaving crowds and deafening noise. Again, January is almost around the corner and here I sit, no plane ticket.

When I lived in the UK, I got my best opportunity to get a glance at live coverage of the tournament. Credit to the BBC, as they provide great coverage and analysis of the Cup, the qualifiers and the boost it gives some teams and certainly some up and coming players.

I have an intense interest in Africa, having studied to be a translator and spent time in courses on African history and economics in college. But the play of the participants is what is alluring. And now, what has in the past been a launching pad for young players (e.g., Diouf, Diao, Diop all emerging from Senegal's great team of the past few years) now it becomes a showcase for players who are getting attention and playing time in the big European sides. Essien, Martins, Eto'o, Drogba, Toure, Mido, LuaLua, Camara, Benjani, and Aliou Cisse are just a few names that have shown their quality in Europe and who now excite observers relishing the prospect of the tournament.

Do what you can to take in coverage of the African Nations Cup when it commences January 20, 2006 in Egypt--look around for streams of video, or perhaps you will find some matches available by audio on sites like the BBC. You can tell its value from the number of managers who are complaining that their African players will be absent most of the month.

Meanwhile, I'll be in cold Northern Europe, wishing I was pitchside in Cairo.