Governing Bodies
FORMER NIGERIA INTERNATIONAL, KINGSLEY ONYE, BLASTS GERNOT ROHR
Nigeria’s Super Eagles’ manager, Gernot Rohr seems to be at the centre of the storm. Only two days ago, his employers, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), issued him a query over breach of contract agreement and for this and others reasons, former Nigerian international, Kingsley Onye has teamed up with those who believe the coach has not done enough to be retained as Super Eagles manager.
Onye, who is based in the United Kingdom, in a telephone interview with ThisdaySports expressed his disgust at the levels at which the Super Eagles are currently operating.
“Their performance at the last Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt was not impressive at all”, said the left footed defender who was a key member of the Flying Eagles squad that placed third in the then World Youth Championship now renamed U20 World Cup.
The performance remains evergreen considering that it is the 1989 squad that did better emerging runners-up in Saudi Arabia.
To Onye who is popularly called ‘Mature’, Nigeria’s football is currently sliding considering the results posted by the various national teams including the beach soccer squad, the U23 side, the Super Falcons and also the U17 team.
He faulted the lingering goalkeeping problems the Super Eagles have been having for nearly five years now and advocated for a thorough search for Nigerian players within the country and around the globe.
In the face of the dwindling standard, he singled out Samuel Chukwueze as a striker to watch while also lending his support for the efforts to make Queens Park Rangers midfielder, Ebere Eze to switch allegiance to Nigeria.
Onye called on the involvement of some Nigerian former internationals to get integrated into the coaching class so as to regenerate the stars.
“Lets look towards people like Taribo West, Nwankwo Kanu as former players who could help develop new talents”, remarked Onye.
“Kanu can be inspirational to the up coming stars. With a combination with another star like Taribo they can combine to give ideas on how international assignments are executed having been there before and having trained under some of the best coaches in Europe apart from playing for top clubs.”
Surprisingly, Austin Jay Jay Okocha was conspicuously absent in his list. He explained that a player like Okocha is exceptional and his skills are difficult to replicate.
Onye explained that while Samson Siasia and Christian Chukwu were on the saddle as Super Eagles’ manager, he acted as scouts for them.
But it has been difficult to point out a Nigerian coach to handle the Super Eagles owing to their lining towards nepotism.
He found it difficult to name a current Nigerian coach as a possible successor to the troubled Gernot Rohr as he described Manu Garba as having led the worse Nigerian U17 team in history.
On Imama Amapakabo, Onye said that the U23 coach was to be a member of their 1985 Flying Eagles to Soviet Union but was decamped as a goalkeeper. “He nearly took Rangers down the season after the club won the Nigerian league in 2016.
He believed that Nigeria might have to look to the members of the 1994 Super Eagles to get a successor to Gernot Rohr whose contract he believed should not be renewed.
Meanwhile, embattled coach has explained the true state of his contract with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) as the row over extending his contract continue to be in public discuss.
Although the coach is pushing for an extension, however fresh clauses in the supposed new agreement is what is making the two parties not to shift stand.
FIFA’s independent Ethics Committee has banned former Guyana Football Federation (GFF) General Secretary Ian Alves from all football-related activities for five years after finding he sexually harassed female staff members.
FIFA also fined Alves 20,000 Swiss francs ($22,000) after determining that he had breached provisions of the FIFA Code of Ethics relating to the protection of physical and mental integrity, abuse of position and general duties.
“FIFA has a strict stance against all forms of abuse in football,” the organisation said on Monday.
The decision followed a review of written statements from the victims, documents provided by the GFF, submissions from Alves, and other evidence gathered during the investigation.
Alves stepped down from his position in 2024.
The ban came into force on Monday, when the terms of the decision were notified to Alves, and the full grounds for the ruling will be communicated within 60 days in accordance with the Code of Ethics, FIFA added.
The GFF did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Alves could not immediately be reached for comment.
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that he planned to seek re-election for a fourth term in a bid to continue to lead the governing body of world soccer.
Infantino confirmed he would run for the 2027–2031 term in the closing moments of the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, which comes less than two months before the start of the World Cup.
The election will be held on March 18 in Morocco, which is set to co-host the 2030 World Cup.
Infantino said he was “honoured and humbled” to have the chance to run for a fourth term.
The Italian-Swiss took office in 2016, replacing Sepp Blatter, and was re-elected unopposed in 2019 and 2023.
Infantino has pushed for the expansion of FIFA competitions during his tenure, with this year’s World Cup in North America the first to feature 48 teams, while the women’s tournament in 2023 has been expanded to 32 teams.
Infantino’s tenure has also drawn some criticism over issues such as high World Cup ticket prices and the decision to award the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize to U.S. President Donald Trump at the World Cup draw in December.
Earlier this month, the council of South American football’s governing body (CONMEBOL) said in a statement it would unanimously support the 56-year-old if he decided to seek another term.
-Reuters
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The supporters of Vancouver Whitecaps, a professional football (soccer) club in Canada, have staged a protest outside the FIFA Congress on Thursday, voicing fears that the Major League Soccer club could be relocated as uncertainty deepens over its ownership and long-term future.
The club is one of Canada’s most historic football institutions and has long been a central part of Vancouver’s sporting identity.
Around 100 fans gathered as delegates arrived for the annual FIFA meeting in Vancouver, chanting, singing and waving club flags in a show of solidarity. The demonstration comes just days after Vancouver Whitecaps FC revealed difficulties in securing a buyer willing to keep the club in the city.
The Whitecaps disclosed earlier this week that “stadium economics, venue access and revenue limitations” have complicated efforts to sell the club, despite a 16-month search for new ownership.
Season ticket holder Derek Hawksworth said supporters felt compelled to act amid growing fears of relocation.
“I wanted to come down given the threat of the team possibly moving,” he said. “It’s a rich history with the Whitecaps in North America… we want Vancouver to stay and not relocate. The history is here, and we want to continue with that history moving forward.”
The Vancouver Whitecaps are a professional football (soccer) club based in Vancouver, Canada. They currently compete in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top-tier league in the United States and Canada.
Concerns were heightened by reports that cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix are leading contenders should the club relocate.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has urged intervention, calling on the provincial government — which owns BC Place — to negotiate a “bridge deal” that would allow the team to remain while plans for a new stadium are explored. The club’s current lease at BC Place expires at the end of the year.
Despite the off-field uncertainty, the Whitecaps have been one of the standout teams this MLS season. They currently sit second in the Western Conference with 24 points from nine matches, just three points behind the San Jose Earthquakes.
For supporters, however, performances on the pitch offer little comfort as the future of their club hangs in the balance — a situation they hope global football leaders gathering in Vancouver will not ignore.
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