Astute sports administrator, Bukola Olapade has been appointed as the Director-General of the  National Sports Commission (NSC).  He becomes the second official of the recently revived NSC.

The appointment is one of those announced on Thursday by the Presidency in a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and  Strategy.

The other appointments made are that of Dr. Abisoye Fagade as the Director-General of the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism, Dr. Adebowale Adedokun as the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement. The other non-director appointment announced is that of  Daniel Bwala as Special Adviser, Media and Public Communications at the State House.

Olopade, the Director General of the NSC is also the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee of the National Sports Festival holding in his home state, Ogun State in January 2025.

He served as a two-term commissioner of youth and sports in Ogun State.

It is almost certain that South Africa’s Patrice Motsepe will return for a second term as the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

He is the only candidate as of the close of nomination on Tuesday, 12 November, confirming that Motsepe will run unopposed.

Motsepe took over from Madagascar’s Ahmed in March 2021 and now looks set to continue leading African football’s governing body after negotiations reportedly cleared the path for his re-election.

Alongside the CAF presidency vote, elections will also decide the new members of the CAF Executive Committee and Africa’s representatives on the FIFA Council.

Nigeria’s Amaju Pinnick and Morocco’s  Fouzi Lekjaa, are serving members of the FIFA Council and hope to retain their seats.

Lekjaa is also the President of the Royal Moroccan Football Association (FRMF).

Other outgoing members include Egypt’s Hany Aboureda, Mali’s Mamadou Toure, Benin’s Martin Tchakos, and Sierra Leone’s Aisha Johansen.

The elections will be held on March 12 in Cairo, Egypt during CAF’s General Assembly. 

Patrice Motsepe is a South African billionaire and businessman who made his fortune in mining.

He founded African Rainbow Minerals, a big mining company, and was the first Black African to join the Forbes  billionaire list.

 In 2021, he took on a major role in African football by becoming the CAF president.  

South African Football Association (SAFA) President Danny Jordaan was arrested on Wednesday over allegations he used the organisation’s money for his own purposes, according to local media reports.

Jordaan, who was a leading figure in bringing the 2010 World Cup to South Africa, had tried to interdict his imminent arrest on Tuesday, but the Johannesburg High Court is only scheduled to hear his submission on Thursday.

The arrest stems from a raid by police on the SAFA offices in March, after which police spokesperson Katlego Mogale said the allegations are that “between 2014 and 2018, the president of SAFA used the organisation’s resources for his personal gain, including hiring a private security company for his personal protection and a public relations company, without authorisation from the SAFA board.”

Jordaan, 73, and his reported co-accused, SAFA chief financial officer Gronie Hluyo and businessman Trevor Neethling, are due to appear in court later on Wednesday.

Neither Jordaan nor SAFA responded to a request for comment from Reuters, but in his affidavit to court seeking to block his arrest, he denies any wrongdoing.

-Reuters