CAF Officials Storm Nigeria as NFF Comes Under Spotlight Over Plans to Host Major Tournament
- CAF officials are in Nigeria to inspect facilities as the NFF plans to host a secondary school football competition
- Nigeria has expressed interest in hosting the CAF African Schools Football Championship in 2026
- The tournament was initiated in 2022 and is sponsored by the CAF President Patrice Motsepe Foundation
CAF officials have visited Nigeria to inspect facilities as the country expresses interest in hosting the African Schools Football Championship in 2025.
CAF, under the leadership of Dr Patrice Motsepe, launched the tournament for U15 high school boys and girls in Africa and has been running since 2022.
Source: Getty Images
According to CAF, it involves two phases: the team compete in the regional tourney before the final phase is held in a selected venue on the continent.
The tournament has a $10 million per season backing from the CAF President Patrice Motsepe Foundation, with winners receiving up to $300,000.
CAF officials visit Nigeria
According to the NFF, CAF officials visited Nigeria to inspect the facilities after Nigeria showed interest in hosting the final phase of the 2026 edition.
The facilities inspected are the Remo Stars stadium and training facilities in Ikenne, and FC Ebedei stadium and training facilities in Sagamu.
CAF sent a seven-man delegation to inspect the facilities on Tuesday, February 3, and Wednesday, February 4, 2026, and it will cover the hotel and hospital facilities in the town.
The officials include: Omar Amr, Fatima Elmissaoui, Herve Dassoundo, Mahmoud Amer, Diabate Zakarhiya, Hend Thabet, Joshua Knipp, and the Executive Director of WAFU B, Philippe Tchere.
CAF faces a hosting dilemma
A controversy arose on social media on Sunday, February 1, after reports broke that South Africa will usurp Morocco as the host for the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations.
Morocco hosted consecutive tournaments in 2022, 2024 and would have hosted the 2026 edition. But rumours spread on social media that the North Africans have withdrawn from hosting the tournament.
South Africa’s deputy minister of sports, Peace Mabe, caused chaos after claiming that the country would host the 2026 edition, two months before the tournament.
Source: Getty Images
The statement caused issues in the media, with many attributing Morocco’s withdrawal to the fallout of AFCON 2025, which they lost to Senegal.
South Africa’s sports minister, Gayton McKenzie, clarified the statement by his deputy that SA is not officially displacing Morocco, but acting in a preparatory role.
McKenzie claimed that it is a standard procedure for another country to play an assisting role ahead of a tournament in case a country withdraws.
CAF and Morocco are yet to make an official statement about the incident, as it is expected that the tournament will go ahead across Rabat, Casablanca and Fez.
NFF issues update on petition to FIFA
Legit.ng reported that NFF issued an update on the petition submitted to FIFA over the ineligibility case of some DR Congo players.
The NFF, through its general secretary, confirmed that Nigeria has a good case with FIFA and a verdict is expected before next month's international break.
Source: Legit.ng
