The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) has accepted the mass resignations of principal officers of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) as discussions continue on a comprehensive roadmap aimed at reforming Nigerian football.
FIFA reached the decision on Tuesday following a meeting at FIFA House in Zurich, Switzerland, involving representatives of FIFA, the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the National Sports Commission (NSC) and the NFF administration.
The world football governing body pledged to continue its engagement with the Nigerian government, the NFF administration and CAF to develop a roadmap that will guide comprehensive reforms of Nigerian football.
At the meeting, stakeholders agreed to sustain engagements and consultations to fine-tune reforms expected to address the short-, medium- and long-term needs of the country’s football administration.
The proposed roadmap is also expected to lead to the emergence of an inclusive and properly structured new NFF, while creating a peaceful and stable environment capable of driving success on and off the pitch.
Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Mallam Shehu Dikko, led the Nigerian delegation to the meeting.
Other members of the delegation included the Director-General of the NSC, Hon. Bukola Olopade; former NFF President and former FIFA Council Member, Amaju Pinnick, who attended in his capacity as Special Adviser to the CAF President and Deputy Chairman of the FIFA Men’s National Teams Competitions Committee; NFF Acting General Secretary, Dr Emmanuel Ikpeme; and the NFF Director of Legal Services, Okey Obi.
CAF Second Vice-President, Kurt Okraku, and FIFA Director of Member Associations for Africa, Gelson Fernandes, were also part of the discussions.
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Dikko expressed optimism that the ongoing engagement would result in a stronger and better-structured football system in Nigeria.
“Mutual engagement among the National Sports Commission, the NFF administration and the Confederation of African Football is ongoing with FIFA on the comprehensive reforms of Nigeria football, including agreeing a roadmap going forward in accordance with the relevant rules, regulations and Statutes,” Dikko said.
“There is no doubt Nigeria Football will emerge much better and properly structured after the conclusion of this process.”
The meeting marks another major step in the ongoing efforts to overhaul Nigeria’s football administration following the resignation of key NFF officials, with FIFA, CAF and Nigerian sports authorities expected to continue consultations on the implementation of the proposed reforms.
