Sao Tome and Principe thrown out of African Cup qualifying

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CAIRO — Sao Tome and Principe has been thrown out of the African Cup of Nations qualifying tournament for breaching COVID-19 protocols in a preliminary tie against Mauritius in March. Sao Tome and Principe fielded a player in the two-leg tie who hadn't submitted to a compulsory pre-match COVID-19 test or provided proof of a recent test. The Confederation of African Football says that constituted a breach of its medical rules. Mauritius was awarded Sao Tome and Principe's place in the main qualifying stage for the 2023 African Cup in Ivory Coast and will go into a group containing Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau.