Egyptian journalists boycott Nigeria coach’s press conference at AFCON 2025

Egyptian journalists covering the national team’s delegation in Morocco boycotted the press conference of Nigeria head coach Eric Chelle during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.

Egypt are set to face Nigeria on Saturday at 4:00 PM GMT at the Mohammed V Sports Complex, in the third-place playoff of the AFCON tournament.

According to a Yalla Kora correspondent, Egyptian journalists decided to boycott Eric Chelle’s press conference in protest against Moroccan journalists repeatedly directing the same question to Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan.

Members of the Egyptian media delegation also officially lodged an objection with the Confederation of African Football (CAF) media coordinator.

The controversy stemmed from what was described as a provocative question posed by a Moroccan journalist to Hossam Hassan during Egypt’s press conference. The journalist asked:
“Do you blame your failure to score against Senegal on the Moroccan stadiums and hotels?”

Hossam Hassan refused to comment, responding briefly: “This is a disrespectful question, and I will not answer it,” especially after several Moroccan journalists repeated the same question multiple times.

Egypt failed to reach the final of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after being eliminated in the semi-finals, losing 1-0 to Senegal last Wednesday.

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