Ivory Coast agrees to host 2023 Cup of Nations

The decision was made after a meeting between CAF president Ahmad Ahmad and Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara on Tuesday.

Ivory Coast's president Alassane Ouattara (R) met with President of the African Football Confederation Ahmad Ahmad on Tuesday.

The Ivory Coast has accepted an offer from CAF to host the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations instead of the 2021 finals, an official source said Tuesday.

The decision was made after a meeting between CAF president Ahmad Ahmad and Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, with Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) officials also in attendance.

The 2019, 2021 and 2023 editions were awarded to Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Guinea respectively five years ago, but the Cameroonians were stripped of the hosting rights for this year's tournament after delays in preparation.

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Egypt will now host the finals, which start on June 21, with Cameroon to hold the event in 2021, Ivory Coast in 2023 and Guinea in 2025.

The FIF appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport over the changing of the dates, but will now withdraw its appeal.

The start of the 2019 tournament has already been pushed back a week by Egyptian organisers in order to give players more time to rest after the holy month of Ramadan.