Governing Bodies
CAF sends inspectors to re-evaluate Cape Coast Stadium
Ghana are set to be stripped of the chance of hosting the first-leg of their decisive 2022 FIFA World Cup playoff qualifying tie against Nigeria at their much-fancied Cape Coast Stadium later this month after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) sent it stadium inspectors to Kumasi on Sunday, Ghanasoccernet.com can exclusively reveal.
This is the clearest indication from Africa’s football governing body that this month’s titanic clash could be moved to Kumasi instead of the Ghana Football Association (GFA)’s favoured Cape Coast Stadium that had been initiallly approved for the game.
It comes after CAF officials inspected the Kumasi Sports Stadium in the Ashanti Regional capital on Sunday afternoon ahead of the league match, clearly indicating that the change of venue for the match is very much on the cards.
The three-man CAF inspection team was taken to observe the Kumasi Stadium by the GFA’s Alex Asante who is in charge of international competitions before the report on the visit was sent to CAF.
The report from the officials on Sunday will result in this week’s final decision from CAF on whether the match should be moved to Kumasi from Cape Coast.
There have been complaints about the pitch in Cape Coast after it hosted an Independence Day parade on 6 March to mark the country’s 65th anniversary.
Officials of the National Sports Authority began work on the field last week but it looks like it will not be in good condition for the 25 March showdown.
The Nigeria Football Federation filed a complaint and request for a venue change after photos of the bad nature of the Cape Coast Stadium field went viral.
The pitch of the stadium, that is supposed to host the Black Stars versus Super Eagles blockbuster, was left in a terribly bad shape after it was pounded with Independence Day activities on Sunday.
The newly-built stadium in central Ghana has been left in terrible condition following the Independence Day parade on Sunday.
Military and police horses hit the ground for several hours during the parade to celebrate Ghana’s 65th Independence which has left the pitch looking like a cassava farm.
The grass, that was approved by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), has suffered severe damage and the surface look brown, making it unplayable.
The pitch would look unrecognizable for CAF officials who gave the greenlight to the Cape Coast Stadium to host the match that would attract global attention.
That is because global television stations will be beaming the match live on their screens and the poor state of the pitch would project Ghanaian and African football in a very bad light.
Top stars from both sides and their foreign clubs would also be worried that their players could be prone to serious injuries if they play on a pitch of such nature.
The players from the top clubs would also not be able to play their best football on a pitch of such nature which has been the bane of African football and how administrators take the issue of pitches for matches seriously.
This has sparked fears that the game could be relocated to another venue to avoid any embarrassment for African football and CAF has responded now by sending its inspectors.
With just some few days remaining for the crucial World Cup playoff against Nigeria, the NSA started emergency repair work at the Cape Coast Stadium but this exercise could be in fuitility if the game is moved to Kumasi.
Ghana played all home games in the group stages of the qualification in Cape Coast.
After the first-leg, the Black Stars will travel to Abuja in four days time for the second-leg and the winner of the playoff will progress to the World Cup in Qatar.
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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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.
Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.
The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.
Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.
“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.
“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”
Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.
“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”
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