A spearhead of the Elephants, a brilliant player and a formidable goalscorer, Laurent Pokou is inextricably linked with the history of African football. Launched in Abidjan, the man from Asmara joined Stade Rennais F.C. in 1974, where he played for four seasons. It was enough to earn him the panegyric-like nickname of the Duke of Brittany, a testament to his extraordinary talent.
''King Pele made him his successor''
The CAN kicks off in Côte d'Ivoire, on home soil, and the competition ball, named "Pokou", is a tribute to this legend of African football. Winner of the competition's top scorer award in 1968 and 1970, the striker's name has long stood beside the record for most goals scored, held by Samuel Eto'o in 2008.
''Pokou won a number of league and cup titles in Ivory Coast and scored a lot of goals, but he also had a very spectacular style of play. He was capable of doing incredible things with the ball. People went out of their way to see him'' told Francis Ouégnin, vice-president of ASEC Mimosas, to Le Monde. In his novel, Jean-Yves Augel wrote that "King Pele had made him his successor". Asked about the players who had impressed him, referee Michel Vautrot said in 1988: "Platini, Beckenbauer, Pelé, Giresse of course, but I have never seen anything like Pokou during a Rennes - Saint-Étienne match. Laurent Pokou, who died in 2016, is a footballing monument, as the Confederation of African Football has shown with this ball in tribute to him.
