Governing Bodies
Nations League games offer European teams last chance to prepare for World Cup
A hectic schedule of club football ahead of the World Cup is interrupted this week as national teams get a last chance to fine-tune their preparations before travelling to Qatar for the start of the tournament on Nov 20.
Holding the World Cup in the middle of the European season is having major consequences for clubs but also for coaches of national teams.
While domestic competitions bear the brunt of the upheaval to the calendar as they are forced to halt a week before the opening game in Qatar, that also means there will be next to no time for national squads to work together before beginning their World Cup campaigns.
Extra importance is therefore placed on events over the next week, as European sides complete the Uefa Nations League group stage while other contenders play friendly matches, including back-to-back games for Brazil on French soil against Ghana and Tunisia.
Reigning world champions France are preparing to defend the crown they won in Russia in 2018 while simultaneously trying to avoid being relegated from the top tier of the Nations League.
Les Bleus, the 2021 Nations League winners, host Austria on Thursday and visit Denmark on Sunday needing to beat both to be sure of remaining in League A.
But France coach Didier Deschamps has numerous issues, not least injuries to key players including Paul Pogba – he is recovering from a knee operation which has left him facing a race against time to be fit for Qatar.
“He will do everything to try to be fit as quickly as possible, despite the lack of time,” Deschamps told broadcaster TF1 on Sunday.
It is also too early to say if a dispute between Kylian Mbappe and the French Football Federation over image rights could impact squad morale, with the Paris Saint-Germain star refusing to take part in a photoshoot on Monday.
France’s latest squad features several new faces who are hoping to seize their chance to impress before final lists must be submitted to Fifa by Nov 13.
Likewise, England manager Gareth Southgate has handed an opportunity to Brentford forward Ivan Toney as the Euro 2020 runners-up play Italy and Germany in Nations League Group A3.
Like France, England suffered a series of poor results in June and so realistically need to win both of these games to avoid relegation to League B.
But Southgate will run the rule over an expanded 28-man squad with Qatar in mind.
“Part of the rationale is that we are very close to a World Cup and we feel, although our results were disappointing in the summer, we have picked on the basis of form and capability over a long period,” Southgate said last week.
Spain and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal will warm up for the World Cup by meeting in Braga on next Tuesday in a game that could decide which of the Iberian neighbours advances to the Nations League Finals next June.
Meanwhile, fresh from signing a new four-year deal, Wales manager Robert Page has named Los Angeles FC’s Gareth Bale in his squad for games against Belgium and Poland.
Wales look set to be relegated from their Nations League group too, but that is not something that will concern them too much before they return to the World Cup stage for the first time since 1958.
–AFP
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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