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Tag: Confederation of African Football (CAF)

  • Super Eagles, Falcons to earn more as CAF declares  unprecedented profit

    Super Eagles, Falcons to earn more as CAF declares  unprecedented profit

    • By Joshua Osinowo with Agency  Reports

    After years of financial turbulence, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has finally returned to profit, a milestone that could see the Super Eagles and Super Falcons smile to the bank in upcoming tournaments.

    At its 47th  Ordinary General Assembly held in Kinshasa, DR Congo, CAF announced a net profit of USD 9.48 million for the 2023 – 2024 financial year, its first positive balance sheet in several years. The organisation’s total revenue jumped to USD 166.42 million, driven by a surge in sponsorship deals, stricter financial controls, and growing global attention on African football.

    CAF President, Dr. Patrice Motsepe, described the development as a “turning point for African football’s financial independence and sustainability.”

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    The profit, CAF explained, will be reinvested in competitions, infrastructure, and member associations a move expected to boost prize earnings for national teams and clubs across the continent.

    Among the changes: The CAF Champions League winners’ prize climbed by 60% to USD 4 million; the WAFCON champions’ reward doubled to USD 1 million; the AFCON 2023 winners pocketed USD 7 million, a 40% increase from the previous edition.

    For Nigeria, that means the Super Eagles and Super Falcons stand to gain significantly in future tournaments as CAF strengthens its financial footing.

    With 16 commercial partners now on board, CAF says the era of deficit spending is over. The organisation projects more funds for grassroots development, women’s football, and club competitions, marking what many insiders are calling “a new dawn for African football.”

  • Continental Cups: CAF approves only Uyo, Abuja Stadiums for Nigeria’s quartet

    Continental Cups: CAF approves only Uyo, Abuja Stadiums for Nigeria’s quartet

    In a decision that will shape Nigeria’s representation in continental football this season, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has officially approved just two stadiums in Nigeria to host matches for the 2025/26 CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup.

    Only the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo and the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja have met the infrastructure and facility requirements set by CAF, following recent inspections.

    As a result, all four Nigerian clubs involved in this season’s continental competitions will have to play their “home” games at these two approved venues.

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    While Remo Stars and Rivers United  will fly the country’s flag in the CAF Champions League, Kwara United and Abia Warriors are the country’s representatives in the CAF Confederation Cup.

    With both CAF tournaments running concurrently, fixture scheduling, pitch maintenance, and logistics coordination will be of utmost importance to avoid clashes and overuse of the playing surfaces.

    The decision highlights Nigeria’s ongoing challenge with maintaining stadiums that meet international standards. Several traditional venues, including the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan and the Enyimba International Stadium in Aba, failed to pass CAF’s minimum criteria for lighting, dressing rooms, medical facilities, and media infrastructure.

  • CAF takes  U-20 AFCON, Flying Eagles to Egypt

    CAF takes  U-20 AFCON, Flying Eagles to Egypt

    The Confederation of African Football (CAF)  has awarded the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) and Egyptian Government the rights to host the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025.

    CAF  said in a statement that  it took the action  after the  original host designate Cote d’Ivoire  pulled out of the process.

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     “This is subsequent to CAF having been informed by the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football (FIF) and the Government of Côte d’Ivoire that due to unforeseen circumstances, they are unable to host the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025,” CAF  stated on its website. “The Egyptian Football Association and the Egyptian Government had previously submitted a bid to host the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025.

    “The opening match of the TotalEnergies CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations 2025 will be played on Sunday, 27 April 2025 and the Final on 18 May 2025,” the statement added.

    The Flying Eagles of Nigeria  has already  qualified  for the tournament.

  • CAF General Secretary cleared of fraud allegations

    CAF General Secretary cleared of fraud allegations

    The Confederation of African Football (CAF)  has said y that the Swiss Public Prosecutor’s Office will not initiate legal proceedings against CAF General Secretary Veron Mosengo-Omba after finding no basis to do so.

    Mosengo-Omba had been under investigation for alleged suspicious payments involving Swiss bank accounts, as disclosed last September by the Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland.

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    He denied any wrongdoing and met with the Swiss Public Prosecutor’s Office in November to answer questions relating to the preliminary investigation.

    “CAF welcomes the decision of the Swiss Public Prosecutor’s Office and is pleased that there continues to be adherence and compliance within CAF and the CAF Secretariat, with the culture and commitment to ethics, transparency and governance that was introduced since the Presidency of Dr Patrice Motsepe,” CAF said in a statement.

    Mosengo-Omba formerly worked at FIFA before taking over as CAF’s general secretary four years ago.

  • A lacerating lesson for Libya

    A lacerating lesson for Libya

     Sir: The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has finally and heavily descended on Libya for the provocative shambles that turned Africa’s most successful and glamorous team into hostages at a Libyan airport for about 16 hours between October 13 and 14. It is deeply satisfying to know that such scandalous and cowardly acts that stain the face of the beautiful game on the continent will not be tolerated going forward.

    The Libyans have appealed the verdict, but to allow their half-hearted appeal sail through would set African football back many years and endorse the dark arts which have been an especially fearsome feature of North African countries in recent time.

    One easily recalls the tempestuous 2010 World Cup qualifying match between Egypt and Algeria which saw both countries accuse each other of food poisoning before a solitary Antar Yahia strike in Sudan sent Algeria to the World Cup and the expense of Egypt.

    It is not for nothing that football is called the beautiful game. It has helped to remove the ugly moments in many aspects of life and society. After all, it was around football that iconic former Ivorian footballer and captain of the national team, Didier Drogba, united warring factions to end what had been a devastating civil war.

    Having slumped to defeat in the first leg in Uyo  despite some expert time-wasting, the Libyans, rather than concentrate on settling scores on the pitch in Benghazi, decided to do it at an airport, thereby risking the lives of some of the biggest sports stars on the planet.

    It is a great thing that CAF is not allowing Libya set a template for how visiting teams are to be treated in African football. While football sometimes ignores dark arts, those dark arts backfire spectacularly when they are not done with enough smarts.

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     With a single point through six qualifying matches, the Mediterranean Knights of Libya are rooted to the bottom of Group D. That is where they deserve to be for deploying such base tactics against Africa’s most successful team, one which has always treated visiting teams with supreme dignity. Rather than concentrate on matters on the pitch where they had a better chance of grinding out a result, they chose to battle at an airport for which they have been fined heavily.

    Let it be etched somewhere in the local lore of Libya that the Super Eagles of Nigeria went to their country spent 16 excruciating hours at a remote airport and left with three points, three goals while fetching their ungenerous hosts a hefty fine of $50,000.

    Lessons don’t come harder than this, or sweeter, for that matter.

     •Ike Willie-Nwobu,Ikewilly9@gmail.com

  • CAF Executives meet  today in Addis Ababa 

    CAF Executives meet  today in Addis Ababa 

    Ahead of its 46th  Ordinary General Assembly , the Confederation of African Football (CAF)  will hold its Executive Committee  meeting  today in Addis Ababa, .

    The Executive Committee meeting which  will be chaired by CAF President Dr. Patrice Motsepe, will start at 10h30 local time (8:30am Nigerian time).

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    The  46th  Ordinary General Assembly which will also take place in the Ethiopian capital tomorrow  will start at  10h00 local time (8:00 am Nigerian time).

  • CAF general secretary faces probe over ‘illegal’  payments

    CAF general secretary faces probe over ‘illegal’  payments

     A top figure in African football’s governing body is under investigation in Switzerland on suspicion of criminal mismanagement of funds, but insisted the bank transfers in question were “legitimate”.

    Veron Mosengo-Omba, general secretary of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) headquartered in Cairo, is being investigated in the western canton of Fribourg.

    In a statement on X, he insisted the financial transfers under scrutiny were “legitimate”, transparent and were “remuneration and bonus” received from CAF.

    The Fribourg public prosecutor’s office wanted the national Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland to handle the case.

    But a Swiss court rejected that bid in a September 13 ruling, which only named the person involved as the general secretary of an organisation based in Egypt.

    Swiss investigative news site Gotham City, which focuses on financial crime in Switzerland, on Wednesday named the person as Mosengo-Omba.

    According to the court decision – which Mosengo-Omba posted a link to – the Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) contacted the Fribourg prosecutors in February.

    MROS said its analysis of transactions showed the general secretary “had, on several occasions, obtained bonuses much higher than the maximum set in his employment contract… and received all of these bonuses and salaries in a variety of Swiss accounts.

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    “We were unable to identify transfers between his Swiss accounts with establishments in Egypt.”

    MROS cited transfers between personal accounts and cash withdrawals, “hindering any possibility of tracing the use of said funds”.

    “These various elements… constitute a bundle of evidence giving rise to suspicions of acts of criminal mismanagement”, said MROS.

    In a statement on X, Mosengo-Omba said the “legitimate and accountable” bank transfers “refer to remuneration and bonus I have received from CAF… and they were made in full transparency”.

    Noting that no criminal proceedings had been initiated, he said the money was “in full compliance with the CAF statutes”.

     “Nevertheless, and because it is in my interest that the matter is clarified quickly and definitely, I have notified the Prosecutor of the Canton of Fribourg of my availability to answer any queries and provide him with any information he may require.

     “I also contacted the banks to clarify eventual doubts that may have arisen.”

    CAF has 54 national member associations and its president is the South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe.

    The organisation is battling to improve its image after widespread allegations of corruption. Its previous president Ahmad Ahmad was suspended by FIFA in 2020 for financial misconduct.

    Le Temps newspaper noted Thursday how Mosengo-Omba, a Congolese-Swiss dual national, fled the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1980 and studied law at the University of Fribourg, alongside current FIFA president Gianni Infantino, with the pair becoming friends.

  • CAF orders rematch as Esperance are stripped of Champions’ League title

    The Confederation of African Football (CAF) Emergency Committee which sat in Paris, has officially decided that the 2018/2019 CAF Champions League game will be replayed after the VAR controversy.

    The replay between Esperance of Tunisia and Wydad of Morocco will take place on neutral ground. According to Morocco World News quoting television channel, Arriyadia, the game will take place in South Africa.

    The executive committee is considering the suspension of the Rades Stadium, in Tunisia as a consequence of the foul play from one of its referees in combination with the Video Assistant Referee technology (VAR) being out-of-order during crucial moments of the match.

    There might also be a fine for Esperance and the Tunisian Football Federation (FTF). FTF requested that the match be scheduled after CAN 2019 in Egypt. That request has allegedly been denied.

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    After a football scandal that Wydad Athletic Club chairman, Said Naciri has deemed “total shame for African football,” CAF had convened an emergency meeting in Paris to examine the unprecedented controversies between Tunisian Esperance and WAC.

    The scandal was caused when the VAR, was said to not be functioning when it was necessary to review critical moments of the match. By not having the VAR in functioning order prior to the match, the referee allegedly breached several rules of the game, costing WAC the goal which would have tied the CAF Champions League 2018/2019.

    WAC players protested to the referee when Esperance was declared the championship winner, leaving Wydad behind with the final score of 2-1 behind. CAF President Ahmad Ahmad sided with Wydad, arguing that the goal, which was rejected during the second leg, was legitimate. Eventually, he called for an emergency meeting to be held on Tuesday to discuss the VAR controversy during the second leg.

    On Tuesday, CAF decided to postpone this emergency meeting about the CAF Champions League game until after the re-election of FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

     

  • Preparations for AFCON 2019 on course, says Pinnick

    Amaju Pinnick, President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), says preparations for the 2019 edition of African Cup of Nations tournament is on course.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Egypt will host the tournament in six centres under the new 24 team format from June 21 to July 19.

    Pinnick, the first Vice-President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), said on Wednesday in Lagos that he received daily reports from the various sub-committees in Egypt preparing for the big event.

    “Preparations have been going on very well. I have daily reports from the various sub-committees and the administration.

    “I believe that Egypt will put up a spectacular performance in terms of organisation and running of the events because they have invested so much,” he said.

    According to Pinnick, Egypt is traditionally a football loving country and is eagerly anticipating the championship.

    Read Also: Policemen storm NFF to arrest Pinnick, others

    The NFF boss said that the 24 team format for the 2019 edition will give more teams the opportunity to participate in the tournament.

    Three countries, Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt took part in the first CAF tournament held in Sudan in 1957. Egypt won the maiden edition. The format for the tournament changed to eight teams and later 16 teams.

    “The new format has given so many countries the privilege of being in AFCON. For instance, Madagascar, Burundi and Mauritania couldn’t have been in the tournament if there was no 24 team format.

    “The new format also has economic advantage because the more games you play, the more television rights and the merrier. It has other advantages for football in the continent,” he said.

    Pinnick said that he was optimistic that the 2019 AFCON would be a great success.

    NAN

  • CAF bans Nigerian referee over attempted match manipulation

    The Referees Committee of the Confederation of African Football ( CAF ) has confirmed the recommendation of  its Disciplinary Board to ban Nigeria referee,  Joseph Ogabor,  from any official mission for one year over  attempted match manipulation.

    A statement on CAF website on Sunday said this was with respect to the Total CAF Confederation Cup 1/16th round first leg between Plateau United (Nigeria) and USM Alger (Algeria) played on April 7, 2018,  in Lagos.

    The decision follows investigations conducted and evidence submitted by the South African match officials of the match  who were contacted by Ogabor to provide “technical assistance” to the Nigerian team.

    Plateau United was also cautioned to refrain from the practice of hospitality gifts which tend to create wrong impression.

    In a related development, the South African Football Association has  been ordered to tender an apology to the Nigeria Football Federation ( NFF ).

    This was after investigations proved that there was no evidence of any official of the NFF being linked to an allegation of US$30,000 bribe.

    NAN