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NIGERIA APPLIED FOR FIFA MEMBERSHIP ON VALENTINE DAY

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BY KUNLE SOLAJA

Nigeria’s direct affiliation to FIFA which was initiated in 1951 came up again in 1959. There was the need for Nigeria to enter for the football tournament of Rome 1960 Olympics. So, it had to join FIFA.

On February 7, 1959, the bid to join FIFA was renewed when the NFA secretary, Mr. Allen, wrote the FA in London for advice regarding featuring in the football event of the 1960 Olympics in Rome.

The English FA secretary replied two days after saying he was pleased with the Nigerian decision to feature in the Olympics. He advised the NFA to apply for membership of FIFA through the secretary of the world body, Kurt Gassmann, promising that the English FA would support such application.

Sports Village Square’s investigation reveals that on Valentine day on 1959 (February 14, 1959), the NFA formally applied for membership of FIFA. Signed by Reginald Allen, the application was addressed to Kurt Gassmann, the Secretary General of FIFA.

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Nigeria’s application for FIFA membership, dated 14 February 1959

The full text reads: “The Nigeria Football Association wishes to apply to the Federation of International Football Associations for membership, and I have been advised by Sir Stanley Rous to write to you on this matter. Would you please be so kind as to send the necessary form of application at your convenience.”

The response was prompt. Kurt Gassmann replied on February 18, the same day the letter got to FIFA headquarters. In the reply, FIFA requested for three copies of the NFA’s Statutes and Regulations as well as information regarding summary of NFA’s activities, competitions and championships.

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File copy of FIFA”s reply to the NFA in 1959

The world body also wanted to know whether the NFA was the sole association governing football in Nigeria.  Other information sought before the NFA’s application was examined included the status and number of players, clubs and referees in Nigeria. FIFA asked further that NFA’s formal application for membership must contain an undertaking that it would conform to the statutes and regulations of FIFA. The NFA was also to observe the laws and game in force and to include in its rules, provisions of Articles 8, 9 and 10 of the then FIFA regulations.

A copy of FIFA’s statutes and regulations was sent under a separate cover to the Nigerian FA.  Allen set out gathering the necessary information.

He wrote to Basil Stallard, secretary of the Nigeria Referees Association (NRA), to get the list of referees who were of international status.

Allen was confident that the NFA would meet other requirements except that of referees. He noted that his idea of Nigerian international referees was about 16.

But he did not consider it too small since the NFA only organised about eight important matches yearly.

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Stallard on his part remarked that there was no standardisation in the classification of Nigerian referees. “That made it difficult to know the actual number of referees who could be called first class”, he remarked.

The argument was that a first class referee in one part might not measure to the same grade in another part of the country. 

To further support NFA’s application, Allen who in March became the association’s chairman, sent copies of NFA’s balance sheet to Sir Stanley Rous, secretary of the Football Association, England, and also to FIFA to support Nigeria’s application.

The association’s account was considered good, having had a record gate-taking of £4,742 in the Nigeria versus English Tourists duel the previous year. Next to that was the £4,406 realised in the Ghana/Nigeria match.

The NFA’s response to FIFA letter was sent on February 25, 1959. Three copies of the association’s constitution as contained in its Annual Handbook was attached to the reply.

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Mr. Allen affirmed that the NFA was the only controlling football association for the entire federation of Nigeria, pointing to the association’s constitution which covered all creeds and tribes, including African and European teams.

It was also pointed out that the Nigeria Challenge Cup competition was entirely national and was run on similar lines to the English Challenge Cup (now The FA Cup). Mr. Allen also wrote that for the 1959 season, there were 81 regional, county and district associations which were affiliated to the NFA.

“These, together with the federal senior league (10 teams) and military forces, make an entry of nearly 100 teams in the Challenge Cup. The NFA also informed FIFA that it had nearly 1,200 recognised teams involving 35,000 players, all of whom are amateur, in its fold.

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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Guinea names Portugal’s Duarte as new national coach

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African Cup of Nations - Semi Finals - Burkina Faso v Egypt- Stade de l'Amitie - Libreville, Gabon - 1/2/17 Burkina Faso coach Paulo Jorge Duarte Reuters / Amr Abdallah Dalsh Livepic/File Photo

Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.

Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.

Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.

Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.

They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.

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-Reuters

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Veteran coach Van Gaal says he is cured of cancer

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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.

The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”

When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.

“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.

Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.

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He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.

-Reuters

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Like father like son, Davide Ancelotti becomes Brazil’s Botafogo manager

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Davide Ancelotti, son of Brazil's Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti, has been appointed coach of Botafogo, the Rio de Janeiro club announced on Tuesday.

In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.

The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.

This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.

The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.

Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.

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As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.

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