AFCON
FORMER SPORTS MINISTER OFFERS EXPLANATIONS ON AFCON BUDGET OMISSION
The media aid to the immediate past sports minister of Nigeria, Nneka Anibeze has offered a defence for her boss over the on-inclusion of fund for Super Eagles’ Africa Cup of Nations campaign in the 2019 budget.
According a press release she sent, Anibeze claimed that it was the NFF that failed to capture its Africa Cup of Nations tournament budget in its 2019 programs sent to the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.
In the defence put up, the media aid remarked that the immediate past Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung debunked contrary claims saying “that it is false and intended to portray the Ministry, particularly himself in bad light.”
Speaking on behalf of Dalung, she remarked that the NFF was asked “to submit their plans for 2019 to the office of Budget and National Planning, directly.
“They did not include AFCON in what they submitted to the Budget office. When the budget process was already advanced, I think it was already at the National Assembly when they discovered that they did not make provisions for AFCON.
“They approached the Ministry of Youth and Sports and I directed that they should write, so that we can apply for intervention from the office of the President. This happened towards the terminal date of the tenure of this administration.
“I also took it up personally with the President as requested, for his special intervention to save the situation but of course, the process, as we all know is slow. It has to go to the office of the President to the Ministry of Finance for advice before it will now go to Budget office and back for approval.
“It is a cumbersome process and therefore it is yet to materialize. Based on the time they initiated the process, it is not the fault of anybody but the fault of the Nigeria Football Federation which completely failed to include AFCON when they were invited by the office of Budget and National Planning to submit their program and budget for the year.”
Dalung, according to the press release, further stated that the Office of Budget and National Planning demanded that NFF send their programs for 2019 directly to its office because Sports had in the past three years taken the better chunk of Intervention Funds meant for other unforeseen events.
“The Budget Office told them to present all their activities for 2019 so that it can be captured in the budget instead of asking for intervention funds always.
“Every self- accounting parastatal submits its budget directly to the Budget Office because it defends its budget. NFF has Capital and Recurrent Expenditure.
“It also receives monthly overhead from government so, it also submits its programs and budget to the Budget Office and defends same. The omission is from the NFF and not the Ministry.
“For NFF to state that ‘It will be a big shame if we failed to succeed at the Nations Cup simply because one individual wanted to punish the leadership of the NFF by not submitting our budget to the Federal Government,’ is false and malicious and an attempt to pin their oversight on the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
“The NFF President came back from France on Thursday and was pushing for me to put more pressure on the government. I went looking for the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance to give them any form of assistance. If they are writing stories to curry public sympathy, Nigerians need to get the correct picture of what happened.
“There was no reason for this to have happened in the first place except for NFF’s campaign and claim that they can do without government’s funding and it backfired so they should own up to their mistake,” Dalung stated.
AFCON
Nigerians, other nationals can apply, as CAF and Morocco Launch Volunteer Programme for AFCON 2025
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) in Morocco have launched the official Volunteer Programme for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Morocco 2025, billed to run from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026.
According to CAF, more than 4,000 volunteers will be recruited to play a central role in ensuring the success of Africa’s most prestigious football tournament, which will be staged across six cities and nine stadiums in Morocco.
Applications are now open at volunteers.cafonline.com and will close on 8 October 2025. The opportunity is open to anyone above the age of 18.
Volunteers will be deployed across multiple functional areas, including media operations, spectator services, accreditation, hospitality, and fan engagement. Selected individuals will receive professional training ahead of the competition and work behind the scenes to deliver a memorable AFCON.
CAF stated that the programme is designed not only to support tournament operations but also to create an alumni network of skilled Africans who can contribute to future sporting events across the continent. Successful applicants will benefit from:
- Training and skill development.
- Official uniforms and certificates of participation.
- Networking opportunities with peers and professionals.
- The chance to contribute to Africa’s football legacy.
Volunteer registration opened on 17 September 2025. Selection and training will take place in October and November, with operations commencing in mid-December through to the tournament’s conclusion on 18 January 2026.
CAF described the initiative as an “exciting opportunity” for Africans to contribute to the growth of the continent’s flagship sporting event, which is expected to draw millions of visitors to Morocco.
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AFCON
CAF Security Chief, Nigeria’s Emeruwa, Leads Inspection of Tangier Stadium Ahead of Major Tournaments
Nigeria’s Dr. Christian Emeruwa, President of the Security and Safety Division of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), on Thursday, September 18, led an inspection visit to the Grand Stade de Tangier as preparations intensify for upcoming continental and global football events.
Emeruwa, who heads CAF’s continental security architecture, was joined by CAF Secretary General Véron Mosengo-Omba, senior Moroccan officials, and executives of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF).
The delegation also included managers of operational companies at the Grand Stade and SONARGES executives.
According to Le 360, the Nigerian official expressed satisfaction with the stadium’s facilities after touring key operational areas, including the main control room with its giant surveillance screen, as well as spectator, player, and VIP access zones.
The inspection was bolstered by the presence of Morocco’s top security and administrative officers—the regional commander of the Royal Gendarmerie, officials of the Auxiliary Forces and Civil Protection, the Wali of Security, the governor in charge of Internal Affairs, and representatives of the National Agency for Public Equipment (ANEP).
A technical meeting followed the tour, where engineers presented recent safety and security upgrades. Among the highlights was the planned installation of a FIFA-standard tarpaulin roof to enhance the venue’s compliance with global hosting requirements.
For Nigeria, the spotlight on Dr. Emeruwa underscores the country’s growing influence in African football administration, particularly in the critical areas of safety and security management for CAF competitions.
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Morocco has received 723 high-end buses from Chinese manufacturer Yutong as part of preparations for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which kicks off on December 21.
Yutong said on social media that the fleet “has officially rolled off the production line” and will provide “comprehensive transport services and reliable operational support” during the tournament.
An official handover ceremony was held on Friday at the company’s facility in Zhengzhou, Henan province, attended by Moroccan representatives and Yutong executives.
The buses were designed to cope with Morocco’s terrain and climate, including steep slopes, heat and sandstorms. They feature an independent front axle suspension to navigate narrow city streets and Yutong’s in-house “Blue Core System” for fuel efficiency.
The delivery is the largest single order of Chinese buses in Africa. Yutong will station more than 100 technicians in Morocco to provide training, maintenance and round-the-clock support during AFCON.
The deal is part of Morocco’s broader transport strategy, which includes plans to purchase 7,000 new buses by 2030—half of them electric—as the country prepares to co-host the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal.
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