Governing Bodies
Super Eagles’ World Cup fate fixed for 27 March 
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
To be or not to be? To qualify for Qatar 2022 or not? The answer will be definitive when the final whistle is blown at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja on Sunday 27 March when the decisive leg of the qualifiers between Nigeria and Ghana will be played.
The Nigeria Football Federation on Tuesday afternoon confirmed the date and venue of the definitive leg of the potentially epic confrontation.
For the Super Eagles, it is a return to their nest at the nation’s capital city. Their last match at the venue was on 15 October 2014 in a 3-1 defeat of Sudan in the failed adventure to qualify for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations.
The first leg of the World Cup qualifying playoff will be played in Cape Coast Ghana on a date yet to be decided by the hosts.
Two dates are being proposed. It could be either 23 March or 24 March.
Nigeria reached the play-off round after topping a qualifying pool that included Cape Verde, Liberia and the Central African Republic while Ghana emerged after a controversy riddled defeat of South Africa in a group that also had Zimbabwe and Ethiopia.
This is the fifth time that both Nigeria and Ghana will cross path in World Cup qualification. They had met in the preliminary rounds for the qualification for Chile 1962, Mexico 1970, West Germany 1974 and Japan/Korea 2002.
In the previous four home and away confrontation within the frame of World Cup qualifications, honours are evenly shared.
Ghana had the edge in the duels of Chile 1962 and West Germany 1974, but failed to qualify. It was advantage of Nigeria in the quest for Mexico 1970 after a 2-1 win in Ibadan and a 1-1 draw in Accra. But Nigeria missed out in the final triangular play-off with Sudan and Morocco.
In 2001, it was again advantage Nigeria who followed up a goalless outing in Accra with a 3-0 win in Port Harcourt to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.
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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