DistantNews
Support us
🇳🇬 Nigeria /Sports

Ikpeme, Abdulrahaman take charge of NFF, NPFL amid football reforms

From The Punch · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme and Dr. Ayo Abdulrahaman have been appointed to lead the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Secretariat and the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) respectively.
  • These appointments follow the resignation of top NFF officials and are part of a broader overhaul of Nigerian football administration ordered by President Bola Tinubu.
  • All processes for the NFF Elective Congress are suspended pending comprehensive reforms, with new elections to commence after consultations with FIFA and CAF.

Nigeria's football administration is undergoing a significant restructuring, with Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme and Dr. Ayo Abdulrahaman stepping into interim leadership roles at the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Secretariat and the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), respectively. These appointments by the National Sports Commission aim to ensure administrative continuity following the abrupt resignations of the federation's top officials.

Dr. Ikpeme, formerly the Deputy General Secretary, now oversees the NFF Secretariat as interim General Secretary. Dr. Ademola Olajire has been appointed interim Deputy General Secretary. These changes occurred after Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau resigned as NFF President, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi as General Secretary, and other Executive Committee members stepped down. Simultaneously, Dr. Abdulrahaman was appointed Chief Operating Officer of the NPFL, just as the new league season commenced.

The reform must respond to a longstanding need to strengthen governance, administration, stakeholder representation, development pathways, domestic competitions and accountability across Nigerian football.

— President Bola TinubuStating the objectives of the comprehensive overhaul of Nigerian football administration.

The shake-up is a direct response to President Bola Tinubu's directive for a comprehensive overhaul of Nigerian football. This directive stems from the country's persistent failures to qualify for major international tournaments. Tinubu emphasized the need to strengthen governance, administration, stakeholder representation, development pathways, domestic competitions, and accountability within Nigerian football.

As part of the reforms, all preparations for the NFF Elective Congress, originally scheduled for September 27, have been halted. A new electoral process will only begin after thorough reforms are implemented, in consultation with global football bodies FIFA and CAF. Furthermore, chairmen, appointed directors, and chief executives of various football leagues have been instructed to hand over their administrative duties to their Chief Operating Officers, ensuring a smoother transition during this reform period.

Football, Nigeria’s most popular sport and the greatest beneficiary of public

— President Bola TinubuHighlighting the importance of football in Nigeria amidst its struggles.
About this summary

Originally published by The Punch in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog