Abidjan – Ivory Coast have not renewed the contract of coach Patrice Beaumelle, the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) said on Tuesday.
“The contract of Mr. Patrice Beaumelle, national coach of the senior team, ended on April 6, 2022 after 24 months,” said the statement.
Frenchman Beaumelle was a longtime assistant to compatriot Herve Renard and the pair led Zambia in 2012 and Ivory Coast in 2015 to the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) title.
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He was appointed head coach in March 2020 and enjoyed a mixed record with the Elephants.
A team containing European stars including Franck Kessie, Eric Bailly, Wilfried Zaha, Sebastien Haller, Nicolas Pepe and Serge Aurier were eliminated by Egypt on penalties in the round of 16 of AFCON 2021 in Cameroon and failed to reach the final African qualifying round for this year’s World Cup.
The name of his successor is not expected to be known immediately, as FIF will elect a new president on April 23.
Six presidential candidates have officially filed their candidacy, including former star striker Didier Drogba.
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The election has been repeatedly postponed since 2020. FIF was placed under supervision in December 2020 by FIFA, which installed a “Normalisation Committee” to try to resolve this crisis.
Ivory Coast will host the next AFCON from June 23 to July 23, 2023.
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Source: AFP
Picture: Twitter / @UsherKomugisha
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