The final list of nominees that will vie for the top prize will be announced closer to the event.

In the preliminary shortlist of nominees released by CAF on Wednesday, six South African players made the shortlist compared to Nigeria’s four nominees. 

Just like Nigeria, Cameroon also has four of its players nominated while the likes of Ghana and Morocco have three players each making the cut.

Tunisia, Zambia, and Botswana all have two of their players nominated while the remaining four countries have just one player each.