The 26th MTN African Cup of Nations presently being played in Ghana has attracted much fanfare and activity from both local and international observers. The enthusiasm which characterizes each match is overwhelming. Football fans are seen wearing clothes that depict the national colours of red, gold, green and black, or the national colours of their countries. It is a time of celebration for everyone; women and children are not left out of the fun. Some of the fans go as far as painting their bodies in the national colours and the celebration starts hours before the kick-start of each match. Europeans, whether tourists or expatriates working in the country are not left out of this "soccer fever". They are seen at the games and the bars enjoying the fine football display, wearing the shirts and joining celebrations. For young British gentlemen who have been in Ghana for barely a week, it is a very different story from what I'm used to back home. In the United Kingdom, although all the games are being shown live on the BBC’s interactive service, there are not a huge number of people watching games. This may be because they are not accessible to everyone, or due to the different lifestyle they have. The final of Ghana 2008 is being shown on terrestrial television by the BBC and so anyone who has a television can watch it. However, it will not get the viewing figures which the Premiership games get. Many people have opted to watch the games from the Premiership instead of the African Cup tournament; but they should be interested in the tournament as it has over 40 of the Premiership's players involved including huge names like Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Kolo Toure. The football quality is not the only thing which makes the tournament appealing, the colourful support and character which comes with it makes it worth watching. The timing of the tournament is something which has brought about a lot of bad publicity in England because losing these players is something which displeases the various clubs. They have therefore called for a re-think of the timing of the tournament very openly in the press. But Africa's football controlling body, the Confederation of African Football has argued that the African Cup of Nations is traditionally staged in the first two months of the year because of the continent's unpredictable weather conditions in the summer months. The rainy season hits western and central Africa in June and July, while the weather in South Africa, which will be hosting the 2010 World Cup in those two months, is usually cold. Ghana 2008 is unique as it is not just a football tournament. It is a celebration and colourful carnival of African culture. Other activities are temporarily put on hold. The hot and unending political debates that usually dominate the media are suspended. All radio and television discussions are on the Black Stars and an interesting aspect is the contribution of the public in these lively programmes, with some of the callers making unimaginable predictions in favour of the national team. So far, the Black Stars have been able to win all the two matches that they have played, but the goals scored fell far below the predictions of the public. Nevertheless, the celebrations have been grand with people pouring out into the streets to celebrate. Also, there are long articles in the newspapers with interesting columns on the matches. Hardly in England do people sing and dance throughout a game like what is obtainable in Ghana. It is rare to see so many people bringing so much character to the support. The large number of African players playing in European leagues is something which has increased the quality of football, when compared to past competitions and so made the 26th MTN African Cup of Nations much more enjoyable for everyone watching, either at home or abroad. Source: Patrick Hanley/The Statesman