After advancing into the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals, Taifa Stars are set to receive a 500m/- reward from President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
This was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Sports, Saidi Yakubu. Yakubu, who accompanied the team to Algeria for the decisive game revealed this to players after the match that the amount is already in the ministry’s custody ready to be given to the team.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa has also lauded Taifa Stars for reaching the finals. Speaking at the parliament in Dodoma on Friday, Majaliwa urged Tanzanians to continue supporting their team. Taifa Stars qualified for the event to be staged in Ivory Coast for the first time since 2019 after securing a heroic 0-0 draw away to Algeria on Thursday. The Taifa Stars knew avoiding defeat in Annaba would be enough to seal their spot at next year’s finals in Cote d’Ivoire.
Read Also: Afcon 2023: President Samia congratulates Tanzania after qualifying for Ivory Coast
Tanzania’s resolute performance denied an Algeria side who had already booked their qualification as Group F winners. The draw ends Tanzania’s AFCON exile, with the Taifa Stars returning to the continent’s showpiece tournament for only the third time ever.
Despite dominating possession and carving out several chances, Algeria were unable to break down their stubborn opponents. Tanzania also posed an occasional threat on the counter-attack to keep the Desert Foxes honest throughout.
The result left Algeria manager Djamel Belmadi disappointed after his side’s winning run was ended. But for Tanzania, this hard-fought draw will feel like a triumph after defying the odds to achieve their target. For Uganda, despite winning 2-0 in their last match against Niger, they scooped third place with seven points will Niger remain at the bottom courtesy of two points.