Angola football in chaos? FA hits back at critics

Angola national team’s recent underwhelming performances have raised questions from some quarters looking at the talented players the Palancas Negras have at their disposal.

After an early exit from the last African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals, the Angolan Football Association (FAF) wielded the axe on then coach Pedro Gonçalves.

Selecção Regista Marca história num ano civil🏆🥳🥳🥳

9 Victórias💪

3 empates🥵

1 Derrota (Botsuana, com penalti inexistente, ja que a bola bate na cara do Gaspar)🤬

Obrigado a todos que directa ou indirectamente contribuíram para essa marca 🤝#forçapalancas🇦🇴❤️💪 pic.twitter.com/YVrQYUSULZ

— Federação Angolana De Futebol (@faffutebol) November 27, 2022

The Portuguese had tried his best, including winning the COSAFA Cup twice in South Africa and qualifying for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals.

Angola: Story of changing coaches

However, FAF felt that was not enough. Ultimately, failure to win the CHAN title and underwhelming performances in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers cost Goncalves his job.

However, even under the reign of his successor Patrice Beaumelle, the Palancas Negras offered little hope. They failed to register a win at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco. The Frenchman, too, left his role.

In the aftermath of the tournament in Morocco, FAF announced strategic changes to strengthen the national team. However, fingers continue to be pointed at the leadership of the federation’s president Alves Simões.

The FAF leadership has come under increasing scrutiny following the recent decisions, including announcing that the Palancas Negras will not play a warm-up match in the current FIFA window for international matches between 23 and 31 March.

Why Angola Football Federation is under scrutiny

FAF announced the cancellation of the Panthers scheduled friendlies against Jordan and Iran in Qatar, citing the ongoing war between Iran and the United States.

The decision of the FAF did not go down well with some sections of the Angolan football fraternity. For example, Angolan journalist Luis Caetano has faulted the association for giving up too quickly and easily on the prospect of securing the friendly.

“The decision to cancel the Black Palancas matches during the FIFA window may be understandable from a security point of view, but it also leaves the feeling that the Angolan Football Federation might have given up too soon in finding alternatives. In international football, when one door closes, another competitive window is usually searched for,” Caetano wrote.

“It is true that aggravating tensions in the Middle East has disabled scheduled matches in Dubai against the national teams of Iran and Jordan, but there are other possibilities.”

Angolan FA comes out of own defence

Such criticism has prompted FAF to respond strongly to their detractors, via a statement accusing them of being less informed and not factual

‘In the last few days, texts have been circulating on social networks that try to paint a picture of chaos in the management of the Angolan Football Federation since Alves Simões’ arrival to the presidency,” reads the statement.

“The problem is not criticism, because criticism is legitimate and necessary in any sporting democracy, but when criticism is built upon half-truths, omissions and rushing conclusions, creating a narrative that serves more to generate outrage than to clarify.”

FAF says it is wrong for its critics to paint a picture that Angola football is in chaos simply based on isolated matters, adding that the dismissal of Gonçalves was made after a thorough analysis.

“The departure of Pedro Gonçalves, for example, is treated as proof of disorganization, when changing coaches is a common reality in any federation in the world. In modern football, technical cycles begin and end according to results, internal assessments, and future strategies. Making this into a scandal reveals more willingness to attack than to analyze,” adds the statement.

“The same goes for coach Patrice Beaumelle’s situation. The mentioned texts imply contract irregularities and serious failures of the federation, but interestingly they do not present a single document, a single official source or any concrete evidence supporting such accusations. It only stays in the territory of suspicion and speculation.”