International Football
On Zik’s anniversary, Nigeria’s Super Eagles seek World Cup playoff slot
BY KUNLE SOLAJA
On a day that Nigeria is seeking a major soccer glory to move into World Cup qualification playoff, it is coincidentally a twin anniversary of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the country’s first president and easily the most sports-inclined.
It is 117 years today that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, popularly known as Zik, began the long adventurous journey. It is also the silver jubilee of his interment on 16 November 1996.
Perhaps it was to his eternal honour that the Nigerian Super Eagles first played on the sacred turf of the old Wembley Stadium on Zik’s anniversary in 1994 and also qualified for the Brazil 2014 on a 16 November date in 2013.
For the former Nigerian president it was a life well lived, a thrilling sporting life.
Perhaps no other Nigerian of his profile adequately combined statesmanship with sportsmanship.
In political area, Zik was noted for compromise. Perhaps also, it had to do with his sporting background.
Sports is about winning some and losing some – a compromise of sort.
More than any other well known Nigerians, Zik was involved in all facets of sports. He was a player in many disciplines – athletics, boxing, tennis and football.
He was an umpire in boxing, athletics and a football referee.
Of course he was a supporter, cheering from the stands in athletics and football and also by boxing ringsides.
As a sports organizer he owned the famed Zik Athletics Club (ZAC) which incorporated many sports disciplines – an envious dream of today’s so called club professional sports clubs.
Archival materials speak volumes of the exploits of the club which was also the first privately owned and also one to own its arena. The club also had branches outside Lagos.
The ZAC Ibadan, contrary to statistics dished out yearly on Challenge Cup finals (now Aiteo Cup), was the first one-man club and first team outside Lagos to play in the finals of the then Governor’s Cup, losing 0-2 to Marine on 6, October 1947.
The ZAC Lagos later transformed to the ACB football club which folded up in 1994.
Endowed with creativity, Zik introduced the word ‘stadium’ into Nigeria’s sports lexicon when he named his football ground, ‘The Yaba Stadium’.
Before then, football arenas were simply called grounds, hence ‘The Association Ground’ which had been variously named as King George V Stadium, Lagos City Stadium, Onikan Stadium and now called Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan.
As statesman, his speeches were sometimes laced with sporting ‘lingo’. While stating his desire to play fairly in the general election, he remarked: “I will not score an offside goal…
“I have been taught by my athletics coach not to beat the gun; by my boxing coach not to hit below the belt…”
Of significance was his address to the nation on January 1, 1964. The broadcast was essentially on Nigeria’s dwindling sporting stature.
Since then, no other head of state or president of Nigeria has ever made sports the theme of a nationwide broadcast.
He dismissed the famous cliché’ of Baron Pierre de Coubertin that honour in the Olympics was in taking part and not winning.
Hear Zik: “Gentility in sports was a by-product of the Victorian era with its aristocratic tradition.
“The concept of not playing to win but having the honour to participate formed the basis of British ethics of sportsmanship”.
He went on to say that the idea spread to everywhere the Union Jack had been hoisted.
Everyone now shares Zik’s view hence the saying of the Olympics: “Winning is not everything, but it is the thing”
The ‘Finalissima’ match between Spain and Argentina that was scheduled to be held in Qatar has been cancelled due to the conflict in the Middle East, while the South American side rejected multiple alternatives, UEFA said on Sunday.
The U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran have affected countries throughout the Gulf, disrupting travel in some of the world’s busiest transit hubs and forcing several sporting events to be cancelled due to safety concerns.
The contest between European champions Spain and Copa America winners Argentina was scheduled for March 27 at Doha’s Lusail Stadium, where fans would have had the opportunity to watch Lionel Messi go head-to-head with Lamine Yamal.
UEFA said they held discussions with the organising authorities in Qatar and concluded that the match could not take place due to the “current political situation” in the region.
“It is a source of great disappointment to UEFA and the organisers that circumstances and timing have denied the teams of the chance to compete for this prestigious prize in Qatar,” UEFA said in a statement.
Qatar’s Local Organising Committee said airspace disruption and travel restrictions led to the cancellation of its Qatar Football Festival, where the host country, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Serbia were also set to play friendly games this month.
The Football Association of Serbia later announced they would play away in Spain on March 27 and host Saudi Arabia four days later.
OTHER ALTERNATIVES REJECTED BY ARGENTINA
The Finalissima’s cancellation was not just about Qatar’s security concerns, however, with UEFA saying they explored other feasible alternatives, but they proved to be ‘unacceptable’ to the Argentinian Football Association (AFA).
UEFA first offered to stage the match at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid with a 50:50 split of supporters in the stadium.
A second option was to stage the Finalissima over two legs — at the Bernabeu on March 27 and the second leg in Buenos Aires during an international window before the next Euros and Copa America in 2028.
However, the AFA rejected both options. UEFA said Argentina made a counter offer to play the game after the World Cup but Spain had no available dates.
“Ultimately, UEFA sought a commitment from Argentina that, if a neutral venue in Europe could be found, the game could go ahead on 27 March… or on the alternative date of 30 March. This proposal was also rejected,” UEFA added.
SPAIN WERE READY TO PLAY
The Spanish football federation (RFEF) said they had offered Argentina “all possible options” in collaboration with UEFA to ensure the match went ahead, adding that they had the organisational capacity to stage the clash on short notice.
“From the very outset, the Federation has expressed its absolute commitment to ensuring this match goes ahead, as it believes it brings prestige and international reputation at a crucial time in a World Cup year,” the RFEF said.
“Furthermore, it has worked tirelessly to achieve this. Spain was prepared to play, as has always been stated.”
The 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada kicks off on June 11.
The 2022 edition of the Finalissima was held at Wembley Stadium in London where Argentina beat Italy 3-0.
-Reuters
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Soccer chiefs from Europe and South America will hold a final meeting before a Thursday deadline to decide whether and where this month’s “Finalissima” between Spain and Argentina will be played, with London emerging as the leading candidate after doubts over Doha, multiple sources told Reuters on Tuesday.
The match between European champions Spain and Copa America holders Argentina had been scheduled for March 27 at Lusail Stadium in Doha.
However, it has become increasingly unlikely that Qatar will host the fixture after the Qatar Football Association suspended soccer tournaments indefinitely following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory missiles fired at the Arabian Peninsula.
The Spanish FA (RFEF) has been pushing for a swift resolution, mindful that the March international break is viewed as vital preparation ahead of the June-July World Cup in North America.
“I know that negotiations are underway,” Spain coach Luis de la Fuente told Spanish Public Radio (RNE) on Monday. “The first thing, as a society, is to stop the conflict, but once you are immersed in it and you don’t know how long it will last, the solution would be, as long as you can’t play there, to find another venue as soon as possible.
Wembley Stadium staged the previous edition in 2022, when Argentina beat Italy, but it is set to host England v Uruguay on March 27. London, however, has other stadiums capable of staging the showpiece, leaving the English capital as the most likely alternative should Doha be ruled out, sources confirmed.
ALTERNATIVE OPPONENTS CONSIDERED
While keen to face Argentina and high-profile players such as Lionel Messi, sources told Reuters that Spain had made clear their priority was not to waste the last window of international fixtures before the World Cup and they were already contemplating alternative opponents.
With Spain also due to face Egypt three days later, any change would require agreement between the RFEF and European soccer body UEFA, South American confederation CONMEBOL, global governing body FIFA and the Argentine FA (AFA).
The RFEF, AFA and UEFA did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
A spokesperson for South American confederation CONMEBOL told Reuters that several meetings between the parties had taken place in recent days but did not confirm Thursday’s deadline or London as the preferred venue.
Madrid was initially proposed by the RFEF but rejected by the AFA, who preferred a neutral venue rather than giving Spain home advantage.
Morocco offered to stage the game, but the RFEF was unwilling to back their Mediterranean neighbours amid tensions behind the scenes over the 2030 World Cup, which Spain, Morocco and Portugal will co-host. Both Spain and Morocco are campaigning to stage the final.
Miami was also considered, with Messi based there at Inter Miami, but Hard Rock Stadium is hosting the Miami Open tennis tournament at the same time.
-Reuters
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International Football
Spain-Argentina ‘Finalissima’ in Qatar at risk amid US, Israel attacks on Iran
The match between Spain and Argentina, tagged “Finalissima” in Doha, is in doubt after the Qatar Football Association suspended soccer tournaments indefinitely following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and retaliatory missiles fired at the Arabian Peninsula.
The contest between European Championship winners Spain and Copa America champions Argentina was scheduled for March 27 at Doha’s Lusail Stadium, with potential big-name draws including Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi.
“Qatar Football Association announces the postponement of all tournaments, competitions and matches, effective from today and until further notice,” the association said in a statement on Sunday.
“The new dates for the resumption of competitions will be announced in due course through the Association’s official channels.”
The final call on whether to postpone the game rests with event organisers UEFA and CONMEBOL.
The Bahrain Football Association postponed all its matches until further notice, while the Asian Football Confederation on Sunday announced it was delaying Champions League Elite fixtures in the region.
The Asian Champions League Two, currently at the quarter-final stage, has also been impacted, along with games in the Challenge League.
Countries across the Middle East have been on high alert since Saturday, when the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes against Iran, aimed at diminishing Iran’s military capability.
Iran retaliated by attacking U.S. targets around the region, including in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
On Sunday, Qatar’s interior ministry reported a fire in an industrial zone after debris fell from an intercepted missile.
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