Tag: UEFA

Former Super Eagles defender, Seyi Ogunsanya has obtained UEFA Coaching License to take a giant stride in advancing his coaching career.

Ogunsanya, who previously played for Shooting Stars and Enyimba International, has successfully earned his UEFA C Coaching License.

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Beginning his professional career with Nigerite Football Club in 1992, Ogunsanya went on to play for several top clubs across Nigeria.

Now based in the United States, he currently coaches a team in Illinois.

The former defender was a key member of the Enyimba squad that won the CAF Champions League in 2003 and also played a role in the Super Eagles’ triumph at the 2004 LG Cup in Lagos.

UEFA will commit 1 billion euros ($1.08 billion) of competition revenue and investment to develop women’s soccer in the continent over the next six years, European soccer’s governing body  has said.The commitment is a part of UEFA’s new strategy to grow the women’s game, with money going to clubs, national teams, senior and youth competitions with the goal to have 5000 professional players and six professional leagues in Europe by 2030.

“European women’s football has never been in a better place,” UEFA’s managing director of women’s football Nadine Kessler said in a statement.

“(It) has become a sport for the masses, attracting an ever-growing and diverse fan base, and partners that wholeheartedly contribute to its growth.”

The women’s game has enjoyed significant growth in revenue and interest in recent years, with the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand generating more than $570 million.

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The Women’s Super League in England also generated record revenue in 2022-23, with more than a million people attending matches in the country’s top two divisions in 2023-24.

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said that the new six-year strategy, dubbed ‘Unstoppable’, would lay the groundwork to unlock the full potential of women’s soccer.

“Our dedication to the cause remains as strong as ever. Our mission is simple – to help women’s football gain a prominent place in the European sporting community,” he added.

There will be a limit on ticket prices that home clubs can charge visiting fans in the three main European men’s club competitions organised by UEFA, European soccer’s governing body has said .

Beginning with the current season, the maximum ticket prices for away fans will be set at 60 euros ($66.40) for the Champions League, 40 euros for the Europa League, and 20 euros for the Conference League.

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UEFA will further reduce ticket prices in the future as this season introduces a new tournament format featuring 36 teams in a single large league, resulting in more matches.

The Nigeria U-15  team has lost the chance to participate in the UEFA U15 Development Tournament slated to commence on Friday following visa denial by the Spanish Embassy

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) disclosed this in a post on its X platform handle. 

It however did not state the reason for the denial. 

The NFF said: “Players and officials of the Nigeria U15 team, Future Eagles, have been denied visas by the Spanish Embassy and will therefore not be travelling to take part in the UEFA U16 Development Tournament starting on Friday.”

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Nigeria’s Future Eagles U15 team were to fly into Spain on Tuesday afternoon following an invitation to participate in the tournament.

The Future Eagles’ delegation to Spain would have included 20 players to be led by a member of the NFF Technical and Development Committee, Zannah Mohammed Malah.

Aleksander Ceferin  has said  he would not seek a fourth term as UEFA president in 2027 despite the approval of controversial reforms that would allow him to extend his mandate.

“I decided around six months ago that I’m not planning to run in 2027 anymore,” the 56-year-old Slovenian lawyer said yesterday  at a press conference following the UEFA Congress in Paris.

 “The reason is that after some time, every organisation needs fresh blood, but mainly because I was away from my family for seven years now.”

Ceferin also said he was “tired of Covid, tired of two wars” and of plans for a rival Super League that he called a “nonsense project”.

His surprise announcement came shortly after UEFA member nations voted overwhelmingly in favour of a series of statute amendments, including a measure that would have let Ceferin potentially stay in his role until 2031.

 “I intentionally didn’t want to disclose my thoughts before, because firstly, I wanted to see the real face of some people and I saw it,” said Ceferin, first elected in 2016 following the downfall of Frenchman Michel Platini. “I didn’t want to influence the Congress. I wanted them to decide (on the statutes) not knowing what I’m telling you today.”

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The key amendment passed does not erase the three-term limit but stipulates that terms of office started or served before July 1, 2017, shall not be taken into account.

The rule was introduced by Ceferin that year as an anti-corruption move in the wake of the FIFA scandal. He said the need to change the existing legislation stemmed from the fact it had not been properly implemented at the time.

Ceferin was re-elected unopposed for a third term last April, just weeks after Gianni Infantino was re-elected as president of the sport’s world governing body FIFA.

However his suggestion he could run for a fourth term, which arose during an executive meeting in December, prompted UEFA’s chief of football Zvonimir Boban to resign last month.

The former Croatia midfielder, who was part of AC Milan’s successful sides in the 1990s, called it a “disastrous idea”.

Ceferin took a parting shot at Boban, formerly a close ally, criticising his “narcissistic whining” and “pathetic cry about morality”.

The motion comfortably received the two-thirds majority required during Thursday’s vote, with England the lone dissenting voice among the 55 member nations. Ukraine abstained.