Governing Bodies
TORINO’S OLA AINA TO BE ON ACTION AS SERIE A RETURNS ON JUNE 20
Nigeria’s Ola Aina could be in action if selected by Torino in the first Serie A match which kicks off on June 20 as Torino face Parma.
Nigeria’s Ola Aina could be in action if selected by Torino in the first Serie A match which kicks off on June 20 as Torino face Parma.
Serie A will return after a three-month coronavirus-enforced absence on June 20 with Torino hosting Parma in the first of four postponed matches on the opening weekend, the Italian league confirmed on Monday (June 1).
The championship will resume with fixtures which were called off when Italian sports was suspended on March 9 because of the coronavirus.
The first match will be 15th-placed Torino versus ninth-ranked Parma at 7.30 pm (1730GMT) on June 20 followed by Hellas Verona, in eighth, versus Cagliari, in 12th, at 9.45pm.
The following day fourth-placed Atalanta will host mid-table Sassuolo at 7.30 pm while Inter Milan, in third, will be at home against relegation-threatened Sampdoria at 9.45 pm.
Most teams have 12 games left to play with 124 matches remaining, to be played in 43 days from June 20 to August 2.
After the four catch-up games, the 27th round of action will be played with matches scheduled from Monday, June 22 through to Wednesday, June 24.
Juventus, who are bidding for a ninth consecutive title, are one point ahead of Lazio.
Third-placed Inter Milan are nine points behind the leader with a game in hand.
Maurizio Sarri’s Juventus travel to Bologna for their first game back on Monday with Lazio at Atalanta on Wednesday.
Juventus will host Lazio on July 20 at 9.45pm.
The league has not yet confirmed the dates for the Italian Cup, which is expected to be completed the week before Serie A restarts, with the final on June 17.
The return legs of the semi-finals remain to be played with Juventus facing AC Milan and Napoli playing Inter Milan.
Most of the matches will be played at 7.30pm and 9.45pm, because of the summer heat in Italy, with only ten games scheduled earlier at 5.15pm, in the north of the country.
‘SIGNAL OF HOPE’
Games will be played behind closed doors and adhering to a strict health protocol, whereby the entire group must go into a training camp retreat for two weeks in the case of a positive test for Covid-19.
Italian football federation president Gabriele Gravina said Monday he hoped that a small number of fans will be able to attend matches before the season finishes.
“It is my heartfelt wish to be able to see a small presence in stadium for the end of the championship,” said Gravina.
“It seems unthinkable that in a stadium with 60,000 seats, there is no space for a minimal percentage of spectators who can attend the match with all necessary precautions.
“Certainly it is premature today but with the resumption of the championship, there could be a new little signal of hope for our country.” The Italian federation outlined in a 40-page document earlier on Monday the guidelines for the resumption of competition, with a maximum of number of 300 people allowed in the stadium.
-AFP
Governing Bodies
Sanusi set for record-extending tenure as Nigeria’s football politicians assemble in Asaba
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Speculations gathered ahead of the 2024 Annual General Meeting of the Nigeria Football Federation holding in Asaba on Friday have it that tenure elongation for the General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, is a major item on the agenda.
Neither formal confirmation nor denial has been issued since one of the leading newspapers in Nigeria, ThisDay dropped the hint.
The agenda of the meeting is also not made public. Dr, Sanusi is the longest-serving General Secretary in history having been in office from 30 March 2015 making 3,476 days or nine years six months and four days.
It easily drowned that of his closest rival in tenure – Sani Toro whose tenure from 21 December 1993 to 3 May 1999 is merely 2020 days or five years, six months and 12 days.
Thus, no one had enjoyed a longer period in office than the incumbent, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi. It is speculated that the tenure will be extended as NFF has reported that all delegates have arrived in the Delta State capital by Thursday evening.
The NFF Annual General Assembly, the first of which took place 90 years ago in Lagos on 19 February 1934, is the biggest assemblage of football administrators and stakeholders in the country.
In one such meeting on 24 July 2008 in Makurdi, the football body changed its name from NFA to NFF.
This year, according to a press release by the NFF, the plenary will have in attendance, the chairmen and secretaries of football associations in the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory, chairmen and secretaries of the Nigeria Premier Football League, Nigeria National League, Nigeria Women Football League and the Nationwide League One, as well as chairmen and secretaries of the referees’ association, players’ union and coaches’ association. This group of 88 makes up the Congress.
They are joined by the members of the NFF Executive Committee and the management team as well as former NFF Presidents and General Secretaries.
The Minister of Sports Development, John Owan Enoh, is announced as the special guest. Nigeria’s Member of the FIFA Council, Amaju Melvin Pinnick is also expected as well as a representative of the West African Football Union (WAFU B).
The Governor of Delta State, Sheriff Francis Oborevwori will declare the General Assembly open.
Venue is the Unity Hall of the Delta State Government House.
Governing Bodies
Like in Egypt, former Nigerian Olympian, Sadiq Abdulahi wants Tinubu to declare ‘State of Emergency’ in Sports
Former Nigerian tennis player and Olympian, Prof. Sadiq Abdulahi has called for drastic action to arrest the decline of Nigeria in global sporting events.
The former tennis player who is now a professor in the United States declared that the “failure to win a medal at the regular 2024 Paris Olympics, the few medals at the Paris Paralympic and the fallout at the National Youth Sports Festival has exposed the deep problems facing the sport’s sector.”
He wants Nigeria to have the same approach that the Egyptian president has taken while reacting to the country’s performance at the Paris 2024 Olypics.
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that participated at the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.
According to Prof. Abdulahi, the National Sports Federations charged with the preparation of elite athletes have failed to do their job despite the cry for funding from the government.
“Federal Government cannot adequately fund all the Olympics sports. It is impossible.
“By declaring a state of emergency, new people, new approaches and new funding models will be identified. More importantly, the Federal Government will redefine grassroots sports development.
“We will lay sustainable foundation for sports development.”
Continuing, he called for the return of the National Sports Commission (NSC) which enabling decree was abolished through Decree No. 7 of 1991, but came back through presidential proclamation under Sani Abacha before it was abolished again.
The original NSC was established in 1964 as National Sports Council before the promulgation of Decree 34 of 1971 which legalised it as the apex Federal Government agency to control, regulate and organize sports.
“The FG may now bring back the National Sports Commission or the National Sports Authority. Our emerging national economy with the full participation of the private sector can support this new beginning. I hope this helps.”
RELATED STORY: President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul
Governing Bodies
CAF gives Yoruba and Arabic interpretations of ‘OLA’ the Super Cup 2024 Official Match Ball
The Confédération African of Football, CAF, has given the linguistics interpretation of OLA, the confederation’s official match balls produced by Puma which has also unveiled a special edition for the Super Cup duel holding on Friday in Saudi Arabia.
According to CAF, OLA, symbolizing the dynamic and energetic nature of African football, means “wealth,” “honour,” and “respect” in Yoruba and “rise” and “success” in Arabic.
The OLA ball stands out with its vibrant design and cultural significance. “OLA”
The ball is a mix of black and gold, representing power and sophistication. The ball will be the centrepiece of the eagerly-awaited match between the two giants of African football.
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