Egypt has announced it won’t bid for hosting the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to instead support Arab neighbours Algeria in their bid.
Abdel-Aziz did not expand on the reasons behind the decision but was talking after FIFA executive committee member Hany Abu Rida said it did not make sense for two Arab countries to compete against each other.
“Egypt will not compete with Algeria – on the contrary we will give the best support we can,” Abu Rida said.
Besides Algeria, Gabon and Ghana are also bidding to host the 2017 AFCON that was earlier supposed to be held in security-troubled Libya.
The host will be unveiled by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on 8 April.
Egypt has organised the Cup of Nations four times, winning three of those tournaments in 1959, 1986 and 2006 and finished third in 1974 as hosts.
