Motsepe insisted that decisions taken by CAF are made solely in the interests of the continent.
Motsepe was responding to a question from a journalist who implied that the move to change the Africa Cup of Nations hosting cycle from every two years to every four years had been influenced by authorities in Zurich rather than by African stakeholders.
The decision has faced criticism from some coaches at the ongoing 35th edition of the tournament in Morocco, but Motsepe again defended the reforms. “It is absolute nonsense to say we will run Africa for Europe, we run Africa for Africa,” Motsepe said.
“When you have 54 nations in Africa saying that the African Nations League is world-class, we have to make decisions that will benefit Africa, and I am confident that over the years the results of our decisions will speak for themselves.”
At the start of the tournament last month, Motsepe announced that CAF would introduce the African Nations League from 2028. The competition will be played annually and is intended to offset revenue losses resulting from the longer AFCON cycle. He repeated his view that the new competition could eventually generate more income than the previous biennial AFCON format.
Addressing claims that he is influenced by external forces, Motsepe recalled pressure he faced shortly after taking office in 2021 to cancel or postpone the AFCON tournament in Cameroon because of the pandemic. He said he resisted those calls because the interests of African football came first. “This AFCON will be profitable, and that is a key issue,” he said.
“I could spend $500 billion and only get $300 million in return, and then it is a problem. I could also spend $100 billion and receive $200 billion and it excites me. Numbers are everything.”
Motsepe believes the African Nations League will strengthen regional rivalries and provide more competitive matches during international windows, while complementing the four-yearly AFCON.
He also addressed complaints from the Senegalese Football Federation about security, accommodation and training facilities before their final against Morocco, saying all concerns had been resolved. Motsepe appealed to Africans to abandon what he called an inferiority complex.
“We have to move away from this inferiority complex where FIFA controls Africa,” he said. “FIFA has more respect for us than some of our journalists. All I ask is stop this inferiority complex. They say good news does not sell anymore; it is the bad news and controversy that sells.”
–SABCSport/ChannelAfrica–
