Governing Bodies
OSIMHEN, NDIDI DELISTED FROM AFRICAN FOOTBALLER OF THE YEAR CONTEST
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
The duo of Wilfred Ndidi and Victor Osimhen are no longer in contention for the African Footballer of the Year after dropping out of the original 30-man shortlist compiled by CAF.
As the list is prune to 10, the only Nigerian who made the cut is Odion Ighalo, the top scorer at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations who also features for Chinese clubside,Shanghai Shenhua.
Sports Village Square notes that Ighalo has a packed field to contest with when a further cut is made, possibly from 10 to five and later to the top three.
Among those jostling are the usual top three suspects, Mohamed Salah of Egypt and Liverpool, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Gabon and Arsenal as well as Sadio Mane of Senegal and Liverpool.
Also in contention is the man whose prowess wrecked Nigeria in the Africa Cup of Nations’ semifinal, Riyad Mahrez of Algeria and Manchester City.
Still in contention areAndré Onana of Cameroon and Ajax, Hakim Ziyech of Morocco and Ajax, Ismail Bennacer of Algeria and AC Milan, Kalidou Koulibaly of Senegal and Napoli as well as Youcef Belaili of Algeria and Ahli Jeddah.
According to a press release by CAF, the current shortlist of 10 is the result of conclusion of the first phase of the voting which was done by CAF Technical & Development Committee and a panel of media experts with emphasis on the nominees’ performance of during the year under review, 2019.
The final phase of voting for the men’s and women’s African Player of the Year, as well as the male and female Coach of the Year, will be selected by Head Coaches/Technical Directors and Captains of senior national teams from CAF Member Associations.
In the African Women’s Player of the Year, two Nigerian players also dropped out from the original 10 released last month.
With the list now reduced to five, only Asisat Oshoala made the cut as Uchenna Kanu and Chiamaka Nnadozie are eliminated.
The women footballers still in contention are:
- Ajara Nchout (Cameroon & Valerenga)
- Asisat Oshoala (Nigeria & Barcelona)
- Gabrielle Onguene (Cameroon & CSKA Moscow)
- Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi & Jiangsu Suning)
- Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa & Beijing Phoenix FC).
Expectedly, no Nigerian footballer is in the list of Interclubs Player of the Year as a result of poor showing of Nigerian clubs in the continents.
Those in contention are:
- Anice Badri (Tunisia & Esperance)
- Kodjo Fo Doh Laba (Togo & RS Berkane / Al Ain)
- Taha Yassine Khenissi (Tunisia & Esperance)
- Tarek Hamed (Egypt & Zamalek)
- Youcef Belaïli (Algeria & Esperance / Ahli Jeddah)
The Interclubs Player of the Year, Sports Village Square gathered, will be decided upon by the Head Coaches and Captains of the group phase of the current season of CAF Interclubs competitions.
The remaining shortlists of award categories are:
Youth Player of the Year
- Achraf Hakimi (Morocco & Borussia Dortmund)
- Krépin Diatta (Senegal & Club Brugge)
- Moussa Djenepo (Mali & Southampton)
- Samuel Chukwueze (Nigeria & Villarreal)
- Victor Osimhen (Nigeria & Lille)
Men’s Coach of the Year
- Aliou Cisse (Senegal – Senegal)
- Christian Gross (Switzerland – Zamalek)
- Djamel Belmadi (Algeria – Algeria)
- Moïne Chaâbani (Tunisia – Esperance)
- Nicolas Dupuis (France – Madagascar)
Women’s Coach of the Year
- Alain Djeumfa (Cameroon)
- Bruce Mwape (Zambia)
- Clementine Toure (Côte d’Ivoire)
- Desiree Ellis (South Africa)
- Thomas Dennerby (Nigeria)
Men’s National Team of the Year
1. Algeria
2. Madagascar
3. Nigeria
4. Senegal
5. Tunisia
Women’s National Team of the Year
1. Cameroon
2. Côte d’Ivoire
3. Nigeria
4. South Africa
5. Zambia
The award winners for each category will be announced during the CAF Awards ceremony on Tuesday, 7 January 2020, at the Albatros Citadel Sahl Hasheesh, Hurghada, Egypt.
The event will celebrate African footballers and officials who have distinguished themselves during 2019. There will also be several new award categories in recognition of exceptional contributions to African football and inspiring individuals.
By Kunle Solaja.
Nigeria is set to host the 48th Ordinary General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), marking the third time the country will stage the continent’s top football gathering.
The development was confirmed in a statement issued by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), which disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on the sidelines of the ongoing Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, approved Nigeria’s proposal to host the event.
The approval followed a meeting between President Tinubu and CAF President Patrice Motsepe, attended by Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, NFF President Ibrahim Musa Gusau, former NFF President and Special Adviser to the CAF President Amaju Melvin Pinnick, as well as CAF Acting General Secretary Samson Adamu.
Sports Villages Square affirms that Nigeria previously hosted the CAF Congress at the National Theatre in Lagos in March 1980 and again in February 2009, when the late CAF President Issa Hayatou secured another four-year term in office.
In addition to this year’s 48th Ordinary General Assembly, scheduled for October, Nigeria also secured the hosting rights of the CAF Awards ceremony. The annual awards gala, which celebrates Africa’s top football performers, has been staged in Morocco over the past three years.
Nigeria had earlier hosted the CAF Awards when telecom firm, Globacom, was the headline sponsor. This year’s event will be the seventh to be held in Nigeria after those of 2005, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014 and 2016.
The CAF Ordinary General Assembly traditionally attracts key football stakeholders from across the continent, including presidents of CAF’s 54 member associations, representatives of the six zonal unions and senior football administrators.
The CAF Awards ceremony is regarded as one of African football’s flagship events, honouring outstanding players, coaches, clubs and officials in a glamorous setting that showcases the continent’s football excellence.
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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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