"We take the utmost care for consumers, staff and participants in all that we do," says Castle Lager brand director Kudzi Mathabire.

"Given the current climate, as our continent continues to battle against the scourge of Covid-19 in many countries, we felt it best to hold off on moving forward with the tournament this year," adds Mathabire.

Castle Lager says that the Africa 5's league is engagement-centric and only works when fans can come out to enjoy and participate in the tournament. The brand says it just simply would not work without the involvement of the fans who have made the tournament such an esteemed event on the African footballing calendar.

Although this will be the second year in a row without the tournament, Castle Lager adds that it remains hopeful that the continent will see better days. All received entries from teams who wished to participate in the league in 2020 and / or 2021 will gain automatic promotion into the tournament as soon as it is safe to proceed.

Entrants will also be the first to be notified by Castle Lager should anything change regarding the tournament and its entries. 

Cameroonian footballing legend Samuel Eto'o says, "We are as disappointed as the fans will be at the news of the 2021 Africa 5's being deferred. But we must all stand united in our fight against the coronavirus so that we may all see the day when we can come together once again and enjoy the beautiful game together," concludes Eto'o.

Africa 5s is a continental social football league that launched with five countries in 2018. The year 2019 saw the league's expansion from five countries to eight countries as well as the inclusion of a woman's league.

In 2020, the league was set to grow even further with the addition of eight more countries, as well as a partnership with sister brands Dourada, Club, Carling Black Label, Castle Free, Nile Special, Safari and Trophy. Castle Lager now hopes to take things to a whole new level when the tournament returns in 2022.

For more information, visit www.castlelager.co.za. You can also follow Castle Lager on Facebook or on Twitter.