What a long wait! The kickoff of the Benin-Lesotho match on Tuesday, September 9, was delayed by 1 hour and 45 minutes due to a technical incident. The Félix Houphouët Boigny stadium, which was supposed to host the match, was plunged into darkness. The lighting in the sports arena was not working.

It was therefore necessary to wait for the resolution of this technical failure for the match to start. On Thursday, September 11, the National Sports Office (ONS) of Côte d'Ivoire published a press release in which it mentioned the cause of the power cut in the stadium.

“Technical teams have been deployed to resolve this malfunction as quickly as possible.”

According to the structure, this breakdown was due to "a communication problem between the Centralized Technical Management (CTM) and the projectors. Control via the Siemens KNX/DALI Twin Plus gateways did not function correctly, causing a delay in commissioning the lighting."

"The technical teams have been deployed to remedy the malfunction as quickly as possible," assures the Ons, which offers "its apologies for the inconvenience that this situation may have caused to the two teams and the stakeholders."

It is committed to "providing better services to visiting teams and strengthening Côte d'Ivoire's position as a sports hub." Ultimately, the ONS hopes that "brother countries will continue to place their trust in the sports infrastructure of the 2023 African Cup of Nations by coming to play their international matches in these well-maintained stadiums."

Electrical equipment tested yesterday Thursday

It should be noted that the electrical equipment at the Félix Houphouët Boigny Stadium in Abidjan was tested yesterday, Thursday, in order to prevent possible incidents.