Cookie Policy
Effective Date: 1 Aug, 2026
Welcome to BOX18 Africa.
BOX18 Africa (“BOX18 Africa”, “we”, “us”, “our website”, “the website”) is a digital media platform dedicated to African football, culture, identity, business, community, lifestyle, and diaspora storytelling. This Cookie Policy explains how we use cookies and similar tracking technologies when you visit or interact with box18africa.com and any related content, applications, newsletters, quizzes, polls, and interactive features (collectively, the “Services”).
This Cookie Policy should be read alongside our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. By continuing to browse or use BOX18 Africa, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Cookie Policy.
1. What Are Cookies and Similar Technologies?
Cookies are small text files placed on your device (computer, tablet, or mobile phone) when you visit a website. They allow a site to recognize your device, remember your preferences and actions over time, and support core functionality, security, and performance.
In addition to cookies, we may use similar technologies, including:
- Local storage and session storage — used by browsers to hold data (such as quiz progress) without transmitting it to a server
- Pixels and tags — small pieces of code used by analytics or email platforms to measure engagement
- Web push subscriptions — used to deliver browser notifications you have explicitly opted into (technically distinct from cookies, but covered here for transparency — see Section 6)
Throughout this policy, “cookies” refers to all of these technologies unless otherwise specified.
2. Why BOX18 Africa Uses Cookies
We use cookies to:
- Keep you securely logged in to gated features such as Inside the Box, our quiz portal, and your Profile page
- Remember your language preference across English, French, and Portuguese
- Operate interactive features such as our FIFA-style quizzes, the homepage Daily Pitch widget, community stats, and leaderboards
- Remember your details if you choose to save your name and email when commenting
- Understand how visitors engage with our journalism, culture, and business content so we can improve the platform
- Protect the website against fraud, abuse, and security threats
- Support advertising and brand partnership technologies that may be introduced in the future, in line with our Privacy Policy
3. Categories of Cookies We Use
A. Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are essential for the website to function and cannot be switched off. They are typically set only in response to actions you take, such as logging in, setting your language preference, or submitting a form. Without these, core parts of the Services — including the quiz portal and your account — will not work correctly.
B. Functional Cookies
These cookies allow the website to remember choices you make (such as saved comment details or quiz-related preferences) to provide a more personalized experience. If disabled, some features may not remember your preferences between visits.
C. Performance & Analytics Cookies
These cookies help us understand how visitors interact with BOX18 Africa — which stories are read, how long visitors stay, and how they navigate between sections such as Competitions & Events, Business of Sports, Culture & Fandom, and The Roots. This data is used in aggregate to improve editorial and technical decisions and does not, on its own, identify you personally.
D. Third-Party & Embedded Content Cookies
Some pages include content hosted by third parties — such as embedded YouTube videos, social media share and follow functionality, and our livescore data provider. These third parties may set their own cookies when you interact with their embedded content. BOX18 Africa does not control these cookies, and their use is governed by the relevant third party’s own privacy and cookie policies.
E. Advertising & Targeting Cookies (Reserved for Future Use)
BOX18 Africa may, in the future, introduce advertising technologies, sponsored content tracking, or brand partnership pixels as part of our commercial operations. Where such technologies are introduced, this Cookie Policy will be updated accordingly, and consent will be requested where legally required before any such cookies are set.
4. Cookies and Technologies Used on BOX18 Africa
The table below reflects the cookies and similar technologies currently used across the Services. (Note: this table should be confirmed against what is actually active in production before publishing — see the flags below.)
| Cookie / Technology | Purpose | Category | Typical Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| WordPress login/session cookies | Keeps you signed in to Inside the Box and your Profile page | Strictly Necessary | Session / up to 2 weeks (if “remember me” is used) |
| WordPress security/nonce cookies | Protects forms (login, registration, comments, newsletter signup) from unauthorized submissions | Strictly Necessary | Session |
| Polylang language cookie | Remembers your selected language (English, French, or Portuguese) | Strictly Necessary / Functional | Persistent (up to 1 year) |
| Comment “save my details” cookie | Only set if you tick “Save my name and email in this browser for the next time I comment” | Functional | Persistent (up to ~1 year) |
| Quiz session data (Inside the Box / Daily Pitch) | Tracks your progress, timer, and lifelines during an active quiz session | Strictly Necessary | Session |
| Cloudflare security cookies | Supports our content delivery network and protects against malicious traffic | Strictly Necessary | Session / short persistent |
| Analytics cookies (e.g. Google Analytics, if enabled) | Measures site usage and engagement in aggregate | Performance & Analytics | Varies (typically 24 hours to 2 years) |
| YouTube embedded video cookies | Set only when you press play on an embedded video (e.g. our multimedia and podcast content) | Third-Party | Varies by provider |
| Social share/follow widgets | May be set if you interact with embedded social sharing functionality | Third-Party | Varies by provider |
| Push notification subscription | Stored only if you explicitly opt in to receive browser notifications for new articles or quiz updates | Functional (opt-in) | Until you unsubscribe or clear browser data |
5. Push Notifications
BOX18 Africa offers browser push notifications for new articles and quiz updates. This is a separate, opt-in technology from cookies — no notification will be sent unless you explicitly grant permission through your browser. You can withdraw this permission at any time through your browser settings, which will stop future notifications.
6. How Long Do Cookies Last?
- Session cookies are temporary and are deleted automatically when you close your browser.
- Persistent cookies remain on your device for a set period (or until manually deleted) and help us recognize you on return visits — for example, to remember your language preference or saved comment details.
7. Managing and Disabling Cookies
You can control or delete cookies through your browser settings at any time. Most browsers allow you to:
- View which cookies are stored on your device
- Delete some or all cookies
- Block cookies from specific or all websites
- Set preferences to be notified before a cookie is placed
Please note that disabling strictly necessary cookies may prevent parts of BOX18 Africa — including login, the quiz portal, and language selection — from functioning correctly.
For guidance on managing cookies in common browsers, visit your browser’s official help pages (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, etc.).
8. Your Consent
Where required by applicable law, we will request your consent before placing non-essential cookies (such as analytics or advertising cookies) on your device. You may withdraw or update your consent at any time.
(Note: if BOX18 Africa does not yet have a cookie consent/preference banner in place, this is worth building before this policy goes live — particularly given your French and Portuguese-language audiences, some of whom may be based in jurisdictions with prior-consent requirements for non-essential cookies.)
9. Cookies and Our Multilingual Experience
BOX18 Africa is available in English, French, and Portuguese. Regardless of which language version of the site you use, the same categories of cookies described in this policy apply. Non-English versions of this Cookie Policy are provided for convenience; in the event of any inconsistency between the English and non-English versions, the English version shall take precedence.
10. Changes to This Cookie Policy
We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the technologies we use, legal requirements, or our operations. Material changes will be indicated by updating the effective date at the top of this page. Continued use of BOX18 Africa after such changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.
11. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Cookie Policy or how BOX18 Africa uses cookies, please contact us at:
Copyright © 2026 BOX18 Africa. All Rights Reserved.