St. Johnstone have hailed Uche Ikpeazu’s selection for the Africa Cup of Nations as a moment of pride, but the Perth club are not expecting any monetary return as the striker heads off to represent Uganda in Morocco.
Ikpeazu was missing from Saints’ squad for the weekend’s 2-1 victory over Ayr United, with head coach Simo Valakari revealing that illness ruled him out before his departure for international duty. The forward had also been unavailable for the postponed cup encounter against Hearts B earlier in the week.
“Uche has been sick this week, and now he travels to Afcon,” Valakari said. “We are very proud of him and wish him all the best.”
While St Johnstone celebrate the milestone of having a current player selected for AFCON, the timing presents challenges both for club and country. Uganda head coach Paul Put has already voiced frustration over limited access to his squad during preparations, with the Cranes forced to line up with just 14 players in a recent friendly against Moroccan side AS FAR.
Put has been critical of Fifa regulations that permit clubs to hold on to players until December 15, leaving national teams scrambling for cohesion days before the tournament kicks off.
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Uganda complete their build-up with a friendly against Gabon on Wednesday before launching their AFCON campaign against Tunisia on December 23. Further group clashes against Tanzania on December 27 and Nigeria on December 30 round off a demanding opening phase.
For St Johnstone, Ikpeazu’s absence is set to stretch across fixtures against Hearts B, Morton and Ross County. If Uganda bow out at the group stage, the striker is expected to return in time for the January 3 meeting with Arbroath.
Despite the prestige attached to Ikpeazu’s call-up, there is little financial upside for Saints. Unlike the World Cup or European Championship, there is no clear or established mechanism for the Confederation of African Football to compensate clubs for releasing players during the AFCON finals.
Kenneth Ssemakula, Uche Mubiru Ikpeazu and Alhassan Baba training today in Casablanca #AFCONPreparations pic.twitter.com/t7iF9whMqR
— Uganda Cranes (@UgandaCranes) December 15, 2025
In the past, St Johnstone have benefited from Fifa’s Club Benefit Programme, receiving £160,000 when David Wotherspoon represented Canada at the 2022 World Cup and £81,000 following Alan Mannus’ involvement with Northern Ireland at Euro 2016. However, Courier Sport understands the club has received no indication that any comparable scheme will be in place for this AFCON tournament.
