The Nation Newspaper

Tag: FIFA

  • Super Eagles may need Buhari’s magical touch to excel in Russia — Perm Sec.

    Adesola Olusade, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Youth and Sports, says the Super Eagles may need the “magical touch’’ of President Muhamadu Buhari to excel at the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

    Olusade made his assertion based on the historical achievement of the Golden Eaglets at the maiden FIFA U-17 World Cup in Beijing, China, when Buhari was the Head of State.

    Reports have it that the Nduka Ugbade-captained Golden Eaglets squad, defied all odds by beating the then West Germany 2-0 to lift the trophy 33 years ago.

    He added that whether by accident or design, he was hoping for another stroke of luck from Buhari to propel the Super Eagles to greater heights in Russia.

    Read Also: My wishes for Nigeria: An open letter to President Buhari

    “Taking us down memory lane, in 1985 when President Buhari was the Head of State, our then Golden Eaglets went for the FIFA World Cup and won the trophy.

    “Now, we have him as the President again; and another FIFA World Cup tournament is holding, it’s like he has the magic wand and it will work for us.

    “President Buhari has bid them farewell, he urged them to play clean, fair and bring back the trophy which I believe he said with faith,’’ he said.

    Olusade assured Nigerians that the Super Eagles would also bank on the overwhelming support of 180 million Nigerians to propel the team to greater heights in the tournament.

    Reports have it that the Super Eagles are in Group D alongside Argentina, Iceland and Croatia.

    The team will open its account against Vatreni of Croatia on June 16 at the Kaliningrad Stadium, in the City of Kaliningrad.

    NAN

  • England player tells family to miss World Cup over racism fears

    England defender Danny Rose has told his family not to attend the 2018 FIFA World Cup finals because he fears they may be racially abused in Russia.

    “I’ve told my family I don’t want them going out there because of racism and anything else that may ­happen,” the 27-year-old left back told London’s Evening Standard on Wednesday.

    “I don’t want to be worrying, when I’m trying to prepare for games, for my family’s safety. If anything ­happens to me, it wouldn’t affect me like it would if my family had been abused.”

    Rose, who suffered personal racial abuse when he played for England’s under-21s in Serbia in 2012, added: “I’m fine with whatever may or may not happen.

    “I like to think I’ll be able to deal with it in the right way.”

    Russia has pledged to crack down on racism at the tournament, which runs from June 14 to July 15.

    However, cases of racist abuse have continued to be reported in the country in the run-up to the World Cup.

    The country was fined last month after racist abuse was directed at French players during a friendly in March.

    FIFA fined Russia 30,000 Swiss francs ( $30,400/22,650 pounds ) for that incident in St Petersburg, which is one of the 11 host cities for the World Cup.

    Rose said the sanction was nowhere near enough to have the desired impact.

    “A 22,000 pounds fine is disgusting,” he said. “What do ( FIFA ) expect?

    “I don’t want to sound arrogant but if I’d been fined 22,000 pounds, without sounding big-headed, it wouldn’t make a difference. A country being fined 22,000 pounds is just laughable.”

    Read Also: Four Lessons from England, Nigeria Friendly

    Rose, who will be appearing at his first World Cup, said his families were disappointed by his decision to ask them not to attend.

    “My dad’s really upset. He said he may never get a chance again to come and watch me in a World Cup,” he said.

    “It’s really sad. Somehow Russia got the World Cup and we have to get on with it.”

    Rose is the latest player to voice concerns about racism at the World Cup.

    His fellow fullback, Ashley Young, said last week that England’s players had talked about the potential for racist abuse from spectators.

    Rose told the Standard newspaper that players had discussed walking off the pitch in such an event.

    “Until it actually happens, and under what circumstances, it’s hard to say what you’d actually do.”

    NAN

  • FIFA files criminal complaint against online ticket seller Viagogo

    Soccer’s ruling body FIFA has filed a criminal complaint against online ticket reseller Viagogo, saying it wanted to protect fans and prevent unauthorised ticket resale at the World Cup in Russia starting next week.

    Zurich-based FIFA said on Tuesday it had filed a complaint, based on the law on unfair competition, with the public prosecutor’s office in Geneva after receiving complaints about the Swiss company’s practices.

    Viagogo did not reply immediately to a request for comment.

    “FIFA’s ultimate objective in the fight against the secondary ticket market is to prioritise the safety and security of fans and enforce a fair 2018 FIFA World Cup ticketing pricing scheme,” it said in a statement.

    Read Also: Doping: Russia has no case to answer says FIFA

    The logo of FIFA is seen in front of its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland September 26, 2017.

    FIFA said that its own website was the only legitimate place to buy World Cup tickets, which are on sale until July 15 – the final day of the tournament.

    “FIFA regards the illicit sale and distribution of tickets as a serious issue,” it said.

    “Tickets purchased via unauthorised distribution channels, including all tickets purchased through viagogo AG, will be canceled once identified.

    “FIFA reserves the right to refuse entry to the stadium to any holder of such tickets.

    NAN

  • Police return Kanu’s stolen $11,000

    Russia Police have returned the $11,000 (about N4m) which was stolen from kanu Nwankwo at the Moscow Airport at the weekend.

    A source close to the former Nigeria international confirmed this to NationSport on Monday.

    “Yes Papilo is grateful. The Russia police and security agencies were very helpful. They recovered it in hours and returned the money to him,” the source said.

    NationSport reports that the 41-year-old took part in a FIFA Legend Game in Russia on Sunday.

    The money was reportedly stolen from Kanu’s suitcase which he discovered at the hotel and quickly alerted the authorities.

    The incident has brought security matters in Russia to the fore with the World Cup just 10 days away.

    Nigeria are due to land in Russia on June 11 from Austria, five  days before their opening game against Croatia.

  • Germany’s Neuer will be first-choice if he makes World Cup – Bierhoff

    Manuel Neuer will be Germany’s first-choice goalkeeper at next month’s FIFA World Cup if he makes the final squad, team manager Oliver Bierhoff said on Thursday.

    The former Germany striker said this even against the background of the fact that the 2014 World Cup winner has not played a competitive game since September.

    Neuer missed almost the entire season after breaking a bone in his foot and undergoing surgery.

    His comeback for Bayern Munich was repeatedly delayed and the 32-year-old has had no match practice ahead of the tournament starting in Russia on June 14.

    He played in both recent training matches against Germany’s Under-20 team at their training base in Italy and is set to play in their friendly international against Austria on Saturday.

    Read Also: Phil Jones out of Super Eagles Friendly

    “Manuel will go to the World Cup as our number one,” Bierhoff told reporters at their training camp in Eppan, northern Italy. “If he makes the squad, then Marc-Andre (ter Stegen) will be number two.”

    There are four goalkeepers, including FC Barcelona’s ter Stegen, Paris St Germain’s Kevin Trapp and Bayer Leverkusen’s Bernd Leno, in coach Joachim Loew’s 27-man preliminary squad, preparing in the Italian Alps.

    He will cut four players, including one goalkeeper, on Monday for his final 23.

    “Manuel is already full on track. He does not need to get back on it. All the players have left a big impression here and it is as very difficult decision,” Bierhoff said.

    “On the evening before the team announcement there will be the final thoughts among the coaching staff. By noon the next day the players will be informed.”

    The Germans also expect Chancellor Angela Merkel to drop in on their camp this week.

    “My information is that on Sunday she will drop by. Before our training camp we visited her and she had hinted that she wanted to say hello without too much fanfare,” Bierhoff said.

    “It’s kind of a tradition. It is nice to hear from her and how she sees the team’s situation going into the tournament.”

    The Germans, who also face Saudi Arabia in Leverkusen on June 8 in their final warm-up match, are in World Cup Group F with Sweden, South Korea and Mexico.

    The tournament starts on June 14.

    NAN

  • Doping: Russia has no case to answer says FIFA

     

    FIFA says there is ‘insufficient evidence’ to open anti-doping proceedings against any player in Russia’s World Cup squad after concluding an investigation launched following the exposure of systemic drug use in Russian sport.

    Football’s world governing body on Tuesday announced an end to the investigation which followed the McLaren reports, which found state-sponsored doping in Russian sport, including football.

    The world governing body said: ‘FIFA can today confirm that the investigations concerning all Russian players named for the provisional squad of the FIFA World Cup in Russia have been completed, with the result that insufficient evidence was found to assert an anti-doping rule violation.’

    Lawyer Richard McLaren’s findings were published in December 2016, after a preliminary announcement prior to the Rio Olympics in July 2016.

    The McLaren report concluded over 1,000 athletes across 30 sports benefited from state-sponsored doping between 2012 and 2015, with the deception’s height coming at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics.

    The implication of 33 unnamed footballers in the McLaren report prompted FIFA to act, prioritising ‘high-level players against whom a suspicion had been raised’, in particular those playing at this summer’s World Cup. FIFA said none of the players investigated can be named under the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code.

    The tournament takes place in Russia next month, with the hosts playing Saudi Arabia in the opening game on June 14 in Moscow.

    Investigations involving ‘several players’ not involved in the World Cup are still ongoing, FIFA said.

    FIFA says it has informed WADA of its conclusions and ‘WADA in turn has agreed with FIFA’s decision to close the cases’.

    The investigation included analysis by scientific and legal experts, reanalysis of stored samples – the returned results were all negative – and testing for tampering of samples. There was no evidence of tampering, FIFA said.

    FIFA also corresponded with Dr Grigory Rodchenkov, the Russian scientist turned whistleblower who exposed the full scale of the scandal, and unannounced target tests were carried out. FIFA said the Russian squad ‘has been one of the most tested teams prior to the FIFA World Cup’.

     

     

  • Nigeria retains 47th position in latest FIFA rankings

    Nigeria has retained her last month Coca Cola FIFA world ranking on 47th position and sixth in Africa in May.

    The rankings released on FIFA website on Thursday recorded few changes as the first 47 countries retained their previous positions.

    According to the rankings on the website, seven international ‘A’ matches, all friendlies, took place in the month and as a result there are few movers in the latest ranking.

    Read Also: ITTF Ranking: Omotayo becomes second highest ranked Nigerian

    Germany, Brazil and Belgium were on the top three positions, while Super Eagles world cup foes Argentina, Croatia and Iceland were on fifth, 18th and 22nd positions.

    Tunisia is 14th on the table, followed by Senegal on 28th and Congo DR the 38th.

    The next rankings would be released on June 7.

  • FIFA meets with top clubs over $25bn investors offer

    The ruling body FIFA has met with seven leading clubs including Real Madrid and Manchester United to discuss a 25-billion dollar offer from investors for a revamped Club World Cup and a new global Nations League, the New York Times reported.

    The paper said that officials from Real, United, Manchester City, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus Turin were invited to FIFA’s Swiss headquarters on Wednesday over the controversial issue.

    The paper quoted FIFA as saying that “today’s meeting allowed us to observe a real interest for a complete reform of the Club World Cup and the development of a new model of competition that would benefit the entire football community around the world.”

    Read Also: Budweiser kicks off ‘Light Up The Fifa World Cup’ global campaign

    FIFA president Gianni Infantino revealed the offer from yet to be identified investors to the governing body’s council two months ago.

    The investors are allegedly ready to dish out a maximum 25 billion euros for the two competitions between 2021 and 2033.

    The proposal has been met with stiff resistance from various sides including Europe’s UEFA and club organizations.

    Critics fear an even more blown up match calendar and rich clubs becoming even richer.

    NAN

  • FIFA proposes biennial mini-World Cup

    FIFA President Gianni Infantino has proposed staging what would effectively be a mini-World Cup, featuring eight international teams, every two years in addition to the traditional competition.

    The tournament, known as the “Final 8”, would be the climax of a global Nations League competition.

    It is part of an ambitious plan to reform international football which FIFA believes could be worth $25 billion in a 12-year cycle.

    In a letter seen by Reuters, Infantino suggested that the new tournament would take place every October and/or November of every odd year starting from 2021.

    He said that a “solid and serious” group of investors were willing to spend $25 billion on the competition and a revamped version of the Club World Cup, which would also start in 2021 with 24 teams.

    The Confederations Cup, currently staged every four years in a year before the World Cup, would be abolished.

    The letter did not clearly indicate how many slots would be allocated to each region.

    Read Also: 2018 FIFA: South Korea to announce squad May 14

    The plans were sent by Infantino to the members of FIFA’s decision-making Council which still has to approve them.

    European soccer body UEFA and its counterpart for North and Central America and the Caribbean, CONCACAF, have already set up Nations League contests in their own continents.

    In both cases, the competitions involve all the national teams in their respective regions who are divided into divisions based on their rankings.

    There is promotion and relegation between the divisions as in conventional domestic club leagues. UEFA’s inaugural competition will begin in September this year.

    Other continents would have to set up similar competitions for the tournament to be viable.

    NAN

  • Super Eagles ready for England friendly – Mikel

    Midfielder Mikel Obi says the Super Eagles will be at their best for the prestige international friendly match against England at Wembley Stadium in London on June 2.

    “There will be no option for us other than to give our best with the FIFA World Cup fast approaching.

    “The match comes up only two weeks before our first match at the FIFA World Cup.

    “It will be a big occasion and a big match for both teams as we both look forward to our respective first matches in Russia.

    “England is a special place for me, having spent so many years playing there, and it is one country I love to go to,’’ Mikel was quoted as saying on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) website on Tuesday.

    The former Chelsea FC player said Super Eagles were already talking to themselves and everyone of them was looking forward to the game.

    Reports have it that Nigeria take on Croatia in their first match at the 21st FIFA World Cup finals at the Kaliningrad Stadium on June 16.

    In their other Group D matches, they will then face Iceland at Volgograd on June 22, and Argentina at Saint Petersburg on June 26.

    On the other hand, England will play their first match in Group G against Tunisia at Volgograd on June 18.

    Thereafter, they will face Panama at Nizhny Novgorod on June 24, and Belgium at Kaliningrad on June 28.

    Meanwhile, tickets for the England/Nigeria match are still selling, with the lowest ticket going for 35 pounds.

    NAN