Nigeria/Ghana 2000 - Co-host experiment

At an emergency meeting in Conakry in 1999, Caf awarded the staging rights to both Nigeria and Ghana after Zimbabwe were disqualified as hosts.

Zimbabwe had failed to meet the financial and infrastructural demands. Morocco was also in contention and they were furious their single bid presentation was overlooked.

It was the first major football event to be jointly staged and the world was following keenly since Europe was also awaiting the jointly staged European Championship in Holland and Belgium later that same year. Japan and South Korea hosted the World Cup jointly two years later.

Generally, the experiment was smooth despite the fact that Nigeria and Ghana do not share a boundary.

The opening match took place in Accra - one of the two venues provided by Ghana and Nigeria staged the final, and it couldn't have been more fitting as the Super Eagles reached the final but lost to Cameroon after a shoot-out.

Cameroon won the trophy for keeps after three wins of the Unity Trophy. All three triumphs were at the expense of Nigeria, previously beaten in 1984 and 1988.