Governing Bodies
UEFA ROLLS OUT CODE OF CONDUCT FOR CHAMPIONS’ LEAGUE QUARTER FINALISTS
Europe’s football governing body, UEFA’s solution to a Champions League competition disrupted by the effects of the coronavirus pandemic is a ‘final eight’ knockout tournament played across 12 days in Lisbon.
Football’s reputation is at stake and, according to Europe’s governing body, the staging of future international matches if protocols are not followed.
According to BBC, in Lisbon, all eight teams and their officials, including Premier League side Manchester City, are required to stick to the rules from a 31-page document.
Some of them will make life very different for the elite of European football.
The beaches and sights of Lisbon will be out of bounds, with players only allowed to leave their hotels with prior agreement – and even then they cannot come into contact with anyone outside their group.
In the hotels, players should have private access routes and a private dining area, while food should only be served by the team’s own staff.
Need your pants washing? Clothes and equipment can only be handled by team staff.
The life of a footballer these days involves plenty of tests for coronavirus and the Champions League bubble will be no different.
Tests were conducted before clubs left for Portugal – two people connected with Atletico Madrid have already returned positive results and not been allowed to travel.
Tests will also be carried out in Lisbon the day before each game. UEFA has promised the results will be delivered – at the latest – six hours before kick-off.
But one or two positive tests could lead to some torn-up team sheets and tactical masterplans.
It is worth noting UEFA’s rules stipulate that provided a team can field 13 ‘A list’ players, plus a goalkeeper, games have to go ahead. If a team cannot do that, they would be allowed to bring in any new signings who had not been registered.
UEFA would look at the potential for rescheduling on a case-by-case basis. However, given the Champions League final will not be moved from 23 August, the reality for any team not capable of fielding a side is that they would probably have to forfeit the fixture.
As if coronavirus tests weren’t enough, there are also drugs tests to think about.
Doping control officers would usually observe from close quarters when players produce a urine sample.
But, to enable the officer to watch from a socially distanced position, players will have a mirror set up opposite the toilet – which might be a little disconcerting.
Planes and buses must be thoroughly disinfected and, “to minimise contact with the general public”, players will be using VIP arrival areas at airports.
The rules for leaving the bus are less glamorous – you just need to remember to use the central door and not get off at the front.
Fans of pre-match gift exchanges will be relieved – pennants can still be swapped before kick-off. But anyone eyeing up Lionel Messi’s shirt will be disappointed, as players are not permitted to swap jerseys.
Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
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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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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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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