Governing Bodies

FIFA BOSS, INFANTINO ADMITTED INTO IOC

Published

5 years ago

January 11, 2020

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) counterpart Yasuhiro Yamashita and International Tennis Federation (ITF) head David Haggerty have officially joined the International Olympic Committee (IOC) after being elected as members on Friday.

Infantino received 63 votes with 13 against, Yamashita earned 74 votes with one against Haggerty earned 70 votes at the IOC Session.

The rubber-stamping of the three officials brings the number of IOC members back above the 100 mark.

Infantino and Haggerty’s membership will be linked to their role as President of their respective International Federation.

The FIFA President becomes the third Swiss member of the IOC, joining Executive Board member Denis Oswald and International Ice Hockey Federation President René Fasel.

Asked after the Session how he felt about his election to sport’s most prestigious club, Infantino said he was “very happy”, emphasising that FIFA and the IOC already worked closely together.

Haggerty joins IOC vice-president Anita DeFrantz and Athletes’ Commission member Kikkan Randall as the Americans who are part of the IOC.

“It is a great privilege to become an IOC member, I am truly honoured,” Haggerty said.

The IOC was waiting for Haggerty and Infantino to be re-elected at their respective International Federations before proposing them as members.

Both won fresh four-team terms as the heads of the ITF and FIFA.

Yamashita was elected JOC President in June to replace Tsunekazu Takeda, who resigned after he was implicated in an alleged bribery scandal connected to Tokyo’s successful bid for the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The 62-year-old, winner of a gold medal in judo at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, also effectively takes Takeda’s place on the IOC – as expected – with his membership linked to his function as the head of a National Olympic Committee.

IOC President Thomas Bach admitted the choice of Yamashita was “motivated” by this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

“We wanted to make sure that Japan is well represented in the IOC and the IOC is well represented in Japan,” Bach said.

Yamashita said he “never expected” to become an IOC member but promised to “work hard for the development of Olympic Movement”.

The IOC membership now stands at 101 after five members departed the body at the end of 2019.

Five of the seven members to have left – Nigerian Habu Gumel, Peru’s Iván Dibós, Guatemala’s Willi Kaltschmitt Luján, Barbados’ Sir Austin Sealy and Syria’s Samih Moudallal – were awarded Olympic Orders today.

Italy’s Franco Carraro had already been bestowed with the award, while Spain’s José Perurena, the other departing member, had not served for 10 years.

–insidethegame

Governing Bodies

Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council

Published

11 hours ago

April 26, 2025

Kunle Solaja

Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.

The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).

The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.

Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.

He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.

An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.

He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.

“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”

Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.

“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.

He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.

“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.

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Governing Bodies

Ex-FIFA Council member and Mali football chief released from jail

Published

3 days ago

April 23, 2025

Kunle Solaja

A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.

Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.

He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.

The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.

He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.

Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.

While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.

-Reuters

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Governing Bodies

Nigeria Football Federation denies owing late national captain and coach, Chukwu

Published

2 weeks ago

April 14, 2025

Kunle Solaja

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.

Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.

The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.

Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.

“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.

“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”

Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.

“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”

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