Governing Bodies
You have zero option, Amaju Pinnick tells Super Eagles
Nigeria may pick the Group C ticket of the qualifying series for the World Cup if the Super Eagles beat Liberia and Cape Verde drop points in their encounter with Central African Republic on Saturday
To this end, the Nigeria Football Federation, chieftain, Amaju Pinnick has told the player to leave no room for errors when they square up against the Lone Star of Liberia in their penultimate match of the group phase of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 qualifying race in Tangier on Saturday evening.
Speaking to the players after Friday’s official training at the impressive Grand Stade de Tangier, Pinnick charged the players to work assiduously as a team to earn the win that would lift the pressure off their shoulders going into the final group phase encounter against Cape Verde’s Blue Sharks in Lagos on Tuesday.
“I have seen the training and I am impressed by the level of seriousness, fitness and commitment.
“The spirit is great and I believe you will do the job tomorrow. Let us leave very few rooms for mistakes; in fact, no room for errors at all.
“I don’t need to start telling you how much Nigerians from all walks of life are looking forward to you picking up the three points here.
“The three points are important and we should put them in our bags as we fly back to Nigeria tomorrow night.”
The FIFA Council Member addressed the players after another vibrant and energetic training session, this time on the turf where they take on the Lone Star in tomorrow’s encounter.
He was joined by NFF 2nd Vice President, Shehu Dikko; Chairman of Technical Committee, Ahmed Yusuf; Felix Anyansi-Agwu, NFF Executive Committee Member and; Augustine Eguavoen, NFF Technical Director.
Victory in tomorrow’s game, and failure by Cape Verde to amass all three points against Central African Republic on the island of Mindelo also tomorrow, will send the Super Eagles to the knockout round of the qualifying series with a game to spare.
Nigeria are on nine points, two more than Cape Verde, meaning another three points and any form of stumble by the Blue Sharks will make the Super Eagles unassailable going into the final match on Tuesday.
The president of the Confédération of African Football, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, has announced five new CAF Vice Presidents. They are:
- CAF First Vice President: Mr Fouzi Lekjaa (Morocco)
- CAF Second Vice President: Mr Kurt Okraku (Ghana)
- CAF Third Vice President: Mr Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
- CAF Fourth Vice President: Ms Bestine Kazadi Ditabala (Democratic Republic of Congo)
- CAF Fifth Vice President: Mr Feizal Sidat (Mozambique)
In addition, the CAF President has co-opted Yacine Idriss Diallo, President of Fédération Ivoirienne de football, into the CAF Executive Committee.
The CAF Executive Committee also approved the names to fill vacant positions on several CAF Committees.
Organising Committee for the African Nations Championship (CHAN)
- President: Pierre-Alain Mounguengui (Gabon)
CAF Technical and Development Committee
- President: Samuel Eto’o (Cameroon)
- Vice President: Malouche Belhassen (Tunisia)
CAF Medical Committee:
- President: Dr. Mohammed Bouya (Mauritania)
- Vice President: Dr. Thulani Ngwenya (South Africa)
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Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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