GLOBAL ASSOCIATION
CAF have announced a significant increase as Africa’s football governing body posted commercial revenues of 125.2 million dollars, a 17% year on year increase, at the CAF 45th Ordinary General Assembly in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.
The increase of $21.6 million in revenue growth over the previous financial year was largely driven by an increase in both CAF’s sponsorship and television rights, setting the Organisation firmly on a path to financial recovery.
The total competition expenses on prize money and tournaments for the year increased by 26% to $78.9 million dollars, as CAF President Patrice Motsepe made good on the Organisation’s promise to invest more money in CAF Competitions and in making African football self-sustaining.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino (L) with Confederation of African Football (CAF) President, Patrice Motsepe (C) and CAF General Secretary, Veron Mosengo-Omba (R), at 45th Ordinary General Assembly of CAF in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.
CAF had to take difficult decisions on the longstanding dispute with some partners by settling matters out of court. This, plus other accounting standards provisions recommended by CAF auditors, were fully provided for in the Financials.
In the year under review, CAF recorded an improved total comprehensive loss position of $15.7 million from prior year position.
NIGERIA
As the summer transfer window heats up, Nigerian footballers are attracting significant attention as some of the most sought-after players in the market.
According to the latest figures released by renowned German-based football information provider, Transfermarkt, Nigerian footballers dominate the list of most valuable footballers in the world.
Leading the pack is Victor Osimhen, the Nigerian and Napoli striker, whose market value exceeds €100 million.
Osimhen’s impressive performances last season helped guide Napoli to their first league title in over 30 years.
The 24-year-old clinched the Serie A Golden Boot with a record-breaking 26 goals in 32 appearances, making him the highest-scoring African player in the league with 47 goals, surpassing George Weah’s record. Osimhen’s exceptional achievements has seen him linked to top clubs worldwide, including Manchester United, Bayern Munich, and Real Madrid.
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Football stakeholders are in no buoyant mood but quietly confident of the Super Eagles’ qualification for the 2026 World Cup, after the three-time African champions were drawn in a tricky Group C of the African qualifiers.
The draw ceremony for the 2026 World Cup African qualifiers was conducted in Abidjan, Ivory Coast after the Confederation of African Football’s Ordinary General Assembly.
The Eagles are in Group C alongside South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, Benin Republic, led by former Eagles coach Gernot Rohr, Rwanda, Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
It will be the third time the Eagles will be drawn in the same World Cup qualification group along with the Bafana Bafana.
During the 2010 World Cup second round qualifiers, the Eagles were drawn alongside South Africa, Sierra Leone and Equatorial Guinea in Group 4 and they defeated the South Africans in both legs 2-0 in Abuja and 1-0 at the Telkom Park, Port Elizabeth.
Both teams were also pitted together in the first round of the 1994 World Cup qualifiers.
Super Falcons coach, Randy Waldrum, is pleased with the preparation of the Super Falcons during their training session ahead of their 2023 Women’s World Cup campaign opener against Canada 21st July.
Nigeria is in Group B with co-hosts Australia, Canada, and the Republic of Ireland in their ninth appearance at the World Cup. Having not missed any of the previous editions of the tournament, the team is out to make a statement with an improved performance in Australia and New Zealand.
Nigeria’s best performance at the World Cup was reaching the quarter-finals in 1999.
As they gear up to face one of the group favourites next week, head coach Waldrum praised Barcelona Femeni superstar Asisat Oshoala and revealed that he was particularly pleased with the training performances of Ifeoma Onumonu, Michelle Alozie, and 19-year-old Deborah Abiodun.
England’s Euro 2022-winning defender, Demi Stokes, has praised the Super Falcons for taking a stand on their welfare after they had their match bonuses at the 2023 Women’s World Cup cancelled by the Nigeria Football Federation.
The Falcons’ World Cup preparations for the tournament in Australia and New Zealand have been blighted by a reported dispute between the players and NFF officials over their bonuses and allowances.
It was reported that the nine-time African champions threatened to boycott their opening World Cup match against Canada July 21 if the NFF reneged on an agreement to split revenue from the tournament.
Manchester City left-back Stokes, who was overlooked for the World Cup by England, hailed the Nigerians for their bravery.
The Commonwealth Games Federation has stripped Nigeria of the gold medal it won in the women’s 4x100m relays at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
This comes after an investigation on the positive doping result returned by Grace Nwokoch, a member of the quartet.
Nwokocha was provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit after her sample returned an Adverse Analytical Finding for Ostarine and Dihydroxy-LGD-4033, a metabolite of Ligandrol.
Both are non-Specified Substances, listed under Other Anabolic Agents in the WADA 2022 Prohibited List.
Others in the quartet who won gold are Tobi Amusan, Favour Ofili and Rosemary Nwokocha.
Team Nigeria have secured one more qualification spot for the relays event of the 2023 World Athletics Championships, which holds from August 19 to 27 in Budapest, Hungary, after a mixed outing at the grand finale of the Deji Tinubu/Lagos Club Athletics Series.
Out of three relay quartets that targeted qualifying times at the event, only the women’s 4x400m made their mark, while their male counterparts and the men’s 4x100m fell short.
Nigeria’s quartet Omolara Omotosho, Patience Okon-George, Ella Onojuvwevwo and Imabong Uko ran a season’s best of 32:27:61secs to move up to 14th and punch their ticket to the World Championships.
Dubem Nwachukwu, Ezekiel Nathaniel, Samuel Ogazi and Chidi Okezie came very close to making top 16 of the men’s 4x400m, posting another season’s best of 3:02.64secs but it was only good enough to rank them 17th in the world.
D’Tigers of Nigeria have crashed out of the 2023 FIBA AfroCan championship after losing 74-72 to defending champions Democratic Republic of Congo in a fierce quarter-final contest, at the Pavilhao Multiusos de Luandå in Angola.
After suffering a defeat against hosts Angola, D’Tigers bounced back strongly to beat Gabon comfortably and booked a place in the quarter-finals.
However, 2019 champions DR Congo dominated the first quarter and clinched a 31-19 lead. Nigeria claimed the remaining 3 sets 18-14, 17-14 and 18-15. However, it was not enough as the first quarter wide margin gave the Congolese the victory.
Nigeria narrowly lost by a 2-point gap as D’Tigers’ spirited performance fell short as Congo managed to hold off their advances to secure a 74-72 victory.
The coach Ogoh Daodu-led D’Tigers were undone by their sloppy start in the first quarter of the thrilling encounter.
LEAGUES
Argentina forward Lionel Messi has signed for American MLS side Inter Miami on a deal that runs until 2025.
The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, 36, left French champions Paris St-Germain at the end of the 2022-23 season.
“I’m very excited to start this next step in my career with Inter Miami and in the United States,” said Messi, who led his country as they won the World Cup in Qatar last year.
Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham said the signing was a “dream come true”
Arsenal have confirmed the signing of England midfielder Declan Rice from West Ham for £100m plus £5m in add-ons.
The Gunners’ announcement comes after the 24-year-old issued an open letter to Hammers fans saying how ‘tough’ a decision it had been to leave the club.
Rice has signed a five-year contract with Arsenal in a deal which has the option of a further year.
Fabinho has been left out of Liverpool’s squad for a training camp in Germany following a £40m bid for him from Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad.
Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson has also been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia but has travelled to Germany.
The Reds received the offer for Brazil midfielder Fabinho.
A decision between the club and player was then taken to remove the 29-year-old from the 32-man touring party, which left on Saturday.
Declan Rice’s club-record arrival at Arsenal in a £105m deal is another sign of the club’s intent.
For three-quarters of the 2022-23 Premier League campaign, only good news attached itself to Arsenal.
With so little expectation, they emerged as the team most likely to end Manchester City’s domestic dominance.
Wales captain Aaron Ramsey has completed a sensational return to Cardiff City on a two-year deal.
Ramsey, 32, had completed a medical with the Championship club.
The ex-Arsenal midfielder’s arrival at Cardiff came after Nice had earlier confirmed that Ramsey had left the French club by mutual agreement.
Edwin van der Sar has been moved to a Dutch hospital but remains in intensive care following a bleed on his brain, his wife Annemarie van Kesteren says.
The former Manchester United and Ajax goalkeeper, 52, had been in hospital in Croatia, where he was on holiday, for just over a week.
Mike Dean is set to end his 28-year career as a professional official.
Dean, 55, became a dedicated Premier League video assistant referee last season after hanging up his whistle at the end of the 2021-22 campaign.
He began officiating in 1985 and progressed from refereeing in the Football League 10 years later to Premier League officiating in 2000.
The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) say Dean will leave the organisation this summer.
Antonio Colak has left Rangers to join Parma for an undisclosed fee, subject to international clearance.
The Croatia international, 29, joined from PAOK last year and scored 18 goals in 39 appearances.
Rangers have recruited forwards Cyriel Dessers, Sam Lammers and Abdallah Sima in recent weeks.
Lucy Bronze hopes England can go one step further and win the Women’s World Cup for the first time this summer after reaching back-to-back semi-finals.
Bronze, 31, has won almost every trophy in her club career and has appeared in five major tournaments for England including Euro 2022.
OTHER SPORTS
In Tennis: Defending champion Novak Djokovic reached a fifth successive Wimbledon men’s final where Carlos Alcaraz will try to end the Serb’s recent dominance.
Second seed Djokovic, 36, won 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-4) against Italian eighth seed Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.
Djokovic is one more win from an eighth Wimbledon men’s title and 24th major title – both record-equalling tallies.
Spanish top seed Alcaraz, 20, won 6-3 6-3 6-3 against Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev.
Alcaraz outclassed Medvedev in the second semi-final, also played under the Centre Court roof, to reach his first final at the All England Club.
Marketa Vondrousova became the first unseeded player to win the Wimbledon women’s singles title as Ons Jabeur’s wait for a major goes on.
Vondrousova, 24, is ranked 42nd in the world after missing six months of last season with a wrist injury.
But the Czech handled the nerves of the occasion better than 2022 runner-up Jabeur to win Saturday’s final 6-4 6-4.
Sixth seed Jabeur, 28, has now lost all three major finals she has played in and was in tears at the end.
Britain’s Neal Skupski won a maiden Grand Slam men’s doubles title at Wimbledon alongside Dutch partner Wesley Koolhof.
The top seeds beat Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-4 6-4.
Skupski, watched by brother and former doubles partner Ken who interrupted a family holiday to be there, became the first Briton to win the mixed and men’s doubles titles at SW19 since 1926.
In Cricket; Somerset booked a record sixth T20 Blast final as they superbly defended an under-par total to beat Surrey by 24 runs in the second semi.
The 2005 winners – and four-times beaten finalists – booked a final against 2019 winners Essex as they scored only 142-7, but then bowled out Surrey for 118.
England paceman Craig Overton and Ben Green took three wickets each as Surrey’s batting crumbled – and their last nine wickets all went to catches devoured by the sharp Somerset fielders.
In Rugby; New Zealand survived a fightback from South Africa to win their Rugby Championship match 35-20 in Auckland.
The All Blacks made a strong start, with tries from Aaron Smith and Shannon Frizell helping them into a 17-0 lead.
A Faf de Klerk penalty got the Springboks off the mark and tries from Malcolm Marx and Cheslin Kolbe reduced the deficit to 23-15.
New Zealand responded with Will Jordan and Richie Mo’unga scores before a late try from South Africa’s Kwagga Smith.
In Golf; Tommy Fleetwood is “excited” to be in the hunt as he looks to chase down leader Rory McIlroy on the final day of the Scottish Open and secure a long-awaited first PGA Tour win.
The Englishman tore round the Renaissance Club in seven-under 63 on Saturday to propel himself to two shots off the pace.
McIlroy battled to a 67 to move 13 under and remain one clear of Tom Kim.
Scottie Scheffler and Shane Lowry are among those within three of the lead.
In Athletics; Great Britain’s Beth Potter won silver and Alex Yee took bronze at the World Triathlon Championship Super Sprint in Hamburg.
Potter, 31, was 10 seconds behind France’s Cassandre Beaugrand, who won in 21 minutes and 35 seconds.
New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde won the men’s event in 19 minutes and 26 seconds, two seconds ahead of Portugal’s Vasco Vilca and Yee, 25.
The Super Sprint format is a 300m swim, 7.5km bike ride and a 1.75km run.
In Boxing; Welsh featherweight Brandon Scott says he “is going to be the best in the world” after taking up boxing because he was bullied for being overweight.
Teenager Scott has won each of his five professional fights and was signed by Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing earlier this year.
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