Governing Bodies
PINNICK GIVES SPORTING FACILITIES TO ALMA MATER, HUSSEY COLLEGE
Hussey College, Warri will be a major beneficiary of a new sports facility and a block of classroom as the Nigeria Football Federation president, Amaju Pinnick gives back to the secondary school that produced him.
Ostensibly, the gifts are part of the 50th birthday ceremony of the NFF chieftain.
Coincidentally, the beneficiary school, Hussey College also produced both Josiah Dombraiye and Thomson Usiyan, a lethal striker of the Nigerian national football team in the mid 1970s.
Till date, Usiyan ranks among the top five scorers for the Nigerian national football team. Dombraiye, one of the heroes of the 2nd All Africa Games in 1973 was also famously the first scorer at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Ominsport Stadium, Yaoundé when it was opened on 13 February 1972.
He scored Nigeria’s two goals in the 2-1 defeat of hosts Cameroon when the stadium was being opened.
According to a press release by the media department of the NFF, the donation of the block of classrooms and sports facilities by Pinnick is a way of strongly galvanising the interest of the school’s present-day students in sports.
“Hussey College has an intimidating pedigree when it comes to sports. The school has produced a long list of the nation’s real icons in football and other sports, as well as juggernauts in other fields of human endeavour.
“I am proud to be able to do something for this great institution”, Amaju Pinnick is quoted by the press release as saying.
“On Friday, I will be presenting to the school a new football field with a sitting pavilion that has plastic seats, as well as a new volleyball court and two fully –furnished blocks of classrooms,” Pinnick said.
In addition, Pinnick will also be presenting to the school authorities four sets of Hussey College customized football jerseys and balls, as well as four sets of volleyball jerseys and balls.
Hussey College, one of the most renown secondary institutions of learning in the country, has churned out distinguished personalities in sports, banking, commerce, education, law, engineering, entertainment, the military, economics, media and persons who went on to become monarchs.
Among them are the immediate past and the present crowned heads of the city (Ogiame Atuwatse II and Ogiame Ikenwoli), some other leading traditional rulers, Brigadier-General Mobolaji Johnson (former military Governor of Lagos State), Admiral Festus Porbeni (former Member of the then Provisional Ruling Council), Dr Gaius Jackson Obaseki (former GMD of NNPC), Otunba Bode Alalade (broadcasting legend), Bismarck Rewane (foremost economist) and showbiz impresario Ken Calebs Olumese.
Former Nigerian international players Thompson Usiyan, Jossy Dombraye, Clement Temile, Mike Obiku, Morten Owolo, Ebiyon Dediare, Ogbein Fawole, Kenneth Nwamuocha, Victor Ighedosa, Humphrey Djebah and Makpor Dibofun all passed through Hussey College.
“Football, nay sport is a veritable and venerable calling these days. Our youths need facilities and equipment for physical, mental and talent development. We also have the responsibility to provide them with the conducive environment to discover their actual talent and hone the same, and nurture it for the greater good of the country in future international competitions,” Pinnick added.
Top officials of the Delta State Government, captains of industry, prominent alumni of Hussey College, monarchs, political and business heavyweights and high-end entrepreneurs are expected at the handing-over ceremony.
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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The supporters of Vancouver Whitecaps, a professional football (soccer) club in Canada, have staged a protest outside the FIFA Congress on Thursday, voicing fears that the Major League Soccer club could be relocated as uncertainty deepens over its ownership and long-term future.
The club is one of Canada’s most historic football institutions and has long been a central part of Vancouver’s sporting identity.
Around 100 fans gathered as delegates arrived for the annual FIFA meeting in Vancouver, chanting, singing and waving club flags in a show of solidarity. The demonstration comes just days after Vancouver Whitecaps FC revealed difficulties in securing a buyer willing to keep the club in the city.
The Whitecaps disclosed earlier this week that “stadium economics, venue access and revenue limitations” have complicated efforts to sell the club, despite a 16-month search for new ownership.
Season ticket holder Derek Hawksworth said supporters felt compelled to act amid growing fears of relocation.
“I wanted to come down given the threat of the team possibly moving,” he said. “It’s a rich history with the Whitecaps in North America… we want Vancouver to stay and not relocate. The history is here, and we want to continue with that history moving forward.”
The Vancouver Whitecaps are a professional football (soccer) club based in Vancouver, Canada. They currently compete in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top-tier league in the United States and Canada.
Concerns were heightened by reports that cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix are leading contenders should the club relocate.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has urged intervention, calling on the provincial government — which owns BC Place — to negotiate a “bridge deal” that would allow the team to remain while plans for a new stadium are explored. The club’s current lease at BC Place expires at the end of the year.
Despite the off-field uncertainty, the Whitecaps have been one of the standout teams this MLS season. They currently sit second in the Western Conference with 24 points from nine matches, just three points behind the San Jose Earthquakes.
For supporters, however, performances on the pitch offer little comfort as the future of their club hangs in the balance — a situation they hope global football leaders gathering in Vancouver will not ignore.
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