FIFA and CAF suspend Nigeria’s football election and plan mission to Abuja

FIFA and the Confederation of African Football have ordered Nigeria’s football federation to freeze its election process, deepening scrutiny of a leadership crisis that has already shaken the organization.

The directive came in a letter dated September 7 and signed by FIFA Chief Member Associations Officer Elkhan Mammadov. It was addressed to NFF Acting Deputy General Secretary Emmanuel Ikpeme and copied to CAF. The letter said the two bodies were examining the “legal, governance, administrative and electoral implications” of the turmoil inside the Nigeria Football Federation.

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legal, governance, administrative and electoral implications

FIFA and CAF cited communications about the resignations of NFF President Ibrahim Gusau, members of the Executive Committee and General Secretary Mohammed Sanusi. They also referred to a September 1 meeting at FIFA House in Zurich involving FIFA, CAF, the NFF administration and representatives of Nigeria’s federal government.

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At this stage, FIFA and CAF have not reached any conclusions regarding the matters under review and no determination has been made with respect to any potential next steps

The bodies stressed that they had reached no conclusions and had made no decision on possible next steps. They instructed the NFF to take no further action on the electoral process until the assessment ends, including preparations for the elective congress scheduled for September 27 in Lafia, Nasarawa State.

The freeze, FIFA and CAF said, is intended to preserve the status quo while they review the facts, the NFF’s regulatory framework and the positions of stakeholders. The NFF must communicate the directive to all relevant parties, including its electoral bodies. FIFA and CAF also said they would send a joint assessment mission to Abuja “at the earliest possible opportunity.”

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at the earliest possible opportunity