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Countdown To Kick-off

Its only until South Africa kick off the 2010 World Cup in Soccer City, Johannesburg.
World Cup 2010: Where are our referees? PDF Print E-mail

For the faint-hearted, this is not the best time to be in the Super Eagles. It does not matter whether you are a member of the technical crew or a player. As we already know, there has been hardly any complimentary word for coach Shaibu Amodu and his team since that unhappy Maputo episode about six weeks ago. With a total of five matches to go in the World Cup 2010 qualifying series against undoubtedly committed contenders like Kenya, Mozambique and Tunisia, and knowing that not winning any of the matches is not an option, it is indeed an exceedingly stressful period for the team. Especially when you are left in no doubt that many of your fans and fellow countrymen do not think much of your chances. Not surprisingly, the football authorities have not failed to make a great show of their ‘‘concern and commitment‘‘ to our World Cup aspirations.

The Nigeria Football Association reportedly held a few ‘‘serious meetings‘‘ with Amodu to find out how the embattled coach plans to ensure that we clinch the only ticket from our group to South Africa 2010. ‘‘Super Eagles‘ qualification for the first World Cup tournament on African soil is not negotiable,‘‘ Chairman Sani Lulu has often declared. ‘‘It is unthinkable for Nigeria not to be in South Africa next year,‘‘ Secretary-General Bolaji Ojo-Oba constantly intones. ‘‘We will do everything to qualify‘‘, board member Taiwo Ogunjobi routinely echoes. No doubt, these are very convenient words when you are not the one to sweat it out with equally determined teams and the burden is on another person‘s shoulders. And does it not seem easy when the only responsibility that you have given yourself as the football governing body in Nigeria is to merely assemble players that are groomed in foreign leagues to represent your country?

But, wait a minute. Is it only national teams that feature in the World Cup? Is it not true that countries also take great pride in seeing their nationals in the role of the most powerful and influential component of any football match? Yes, football associations also strive to ensure that their referees too qualify for the World Cup. Maybe it is high time that the NFA came under the microscope and was seriously asked how it performed in that direction.

Thanks to referee Tom Ovrebo‘s recent controversial handling of the Chelsea versus Barcelona Champions League semi-final match at Stamford Bridge, more people have become very much aware of how influential a referee can be in determining the outcome of a match. Naturally, refereeing is receiving a little more attention in football circles. In view of the fact that Ovrebo is one of the 38 preselected referees by FIFA for the 2010 World Cup, that tentative list is being closely scrutinised now and quite a few people are requesting that Ovrebo should not make the final list.

Let me presume that most Nigerian football fans will like to know how many Nigerians are among the preselected referees. Well, none! In fact, no Nigerian referee has ever been seriously considered for a World Cup match since the elite tournament began in 1930, not to talk of actually handling one. Sadly, my investigations further reveal that no Nigerian referee has ever conducted any FIFA age grade tournament as centre referee. This is so revealing of our football authorities‘ traditional neglect to raise the quality of refereeing in Nigeria to the highest possible standard and our low credibility rating in the eyes of FIFA.

The 38 pre-selected referees for South Africa 2010 are from countries in the six confederations, that is, AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, OFC and UEFA. They are from five countries each in AFC, CAF, and CONCACAF, six countries in CONMEBOL, one country in OFC, and 14 countries in UEFA. New Zealand, in OFC, is the only country that produced two referees.

The oldest among the thirty-eight referees is Hector Baldassi of Argentina under CONMEBOL and he will be 44 years old by the time of the World Cup next year. The youngest is Joel Aguilar of El Salvador under CONCACAF and he will only be 31 then.

What is also of particular interest to us in Nigeria is the fact that the five distinguished countries under CAF are Algeria, Benin, Mali, South Africa, and Seychelles. Yes, even Seychelles that is currently ranked 178 by FIFA.

The FIFA Referees Committee, chaired by FIFA Vice-President Angel Maria Villar Llona, concluded the process in October 2008, and based their decision on results from technical, physical, medical, and psychological tests, as well as performances in matches.

When I asked a retired Nigerian referee who is now a match commissioner and whose identity need not be disclosed so that he may not be victimised by the football authorities, why our referees have consistently been ignored by FIFA for its tournaments, his answer was as scathing as it was not surprising. ‘‘There are good referees in Nigeria,‘‘ he began. ‘‘But less than 10% of our FIFA referees got there by merit. Corruption, favouritism, mediocrity, tribalism, age falsification and ignorance, are issues that we must grapple with. It takes at least four years to groom a World Cup referee. But we badge old men here who cannot pass FIFA tests and are even forced to retire before maturity,‘‘ he concluded.

Now, this is where the NFA comes in. Under its statutes, not only is the Nigeria Referees Association a member of the NFA, it is also the NFA‘s responsibility ‘‘to accept, train, classify and control referees in the territory of Nigeria.‘‘ Instead of using this provision to raise the standard of refereeing in Nigeria, what the NFA did in 2007 was to hold the professional league hostage by being embroiled in a protracted dispute with the league board ostensibly over the appointment of referees. And it is evident on a weekly basis in our domestic league that not much is being done to raise their sense of professionalism. On the contrary, when a little over a year ago Coach Kadiri Ikhana laid bare the rot in the league, the immediate response of the sports authorities was to threaten fire and brimstone if he could not prove his allegations. That was hardly the posture of a country that craved credibility.

Of course, as I tried to point out in a previous article, there are excellent referees in Nigeria just as you can find unprofessional and corrupt referees too in other countries. But the good referees may not be assigned important matches because of their uncompromising stance while the bad ones seem to be at liberty to act with impunity.

I recall how difficult matches in Gboko traditionally ended with the infamous ‘‘Gboko penalty‘‘ for the home side and yet nothing was done by the football authorities to stop the regular incident. There was also the case in Jos where the referee allowed 20 minutes added time in a match that was virtually hitch-free just to give the home team the opportunity for a winning goal. And when my team was the unsolicited beneficiary of a referee‘s bias my complaint to the authorities was simply ignored. The referee‘s excuse for disallowing the visiting team‘s potential match winning goal was that he loved the way my team played and he would be heartbroken if we lost that match. The authorities probably thought that I was crazy to protest against assistance to my team even though it was undeserved.

But the main difference between what obtains in Nigeria and countries that are held in high esteem by FIFA is that whereas in those countries when erring referees are caught they are severely punished as a deterrent, here our sanctions, when they are imposed, are like a slap on the wrist. Instead of punitive fines, life bans, and even imprisonment, our usual sanction is rarely more than a reprimand or a few months‘ suspension.

In any event, a country‘s image in the World Cup is not projected only by participating teams. Many teams strive to have their referees there as well. Others that may not qualify may at least have their referees running the show. That is why it is not only our coaches and players that should toil to make us proud. Our football authorities too should be alive to their responsibility to raise the standard of refereeing in Nigeria to the highest attainable in any part of the world, so that our referees too may be considered good enough for the World Cup.

Source: The Punch (Nigeria)

 
Akon to record official anthem for 2010 FIFA World Cup PDF Print E-mail
Akon has been asked to record the official song for the 2010 football World Cup, which is set to be held in South Africa next June.

The Senegalese singer has been asked by FIFA to be a musical director for the tournament, and to also appear at the opening ceremony, reports Allheadlinenews.com.

"I've been hired as musical director for the World Cup," he said. "I will be overseeing the World Cup anthem and music at the ceremonies and I'm off to South Africa this week for meetings. I love soccer, so it's a great honour."

Despite being friends with England international David Beckham, Akon says he's not planning to invite any footballers to sing on the song. "I know David, he's my man," he explained. "But I'm not asking for his advice. Footballers should stick to football."

Akon says he'll be supporting the host nation during the games.

Earlier this month (May 2), it was reported that comic James Corden is set to cover New Order's 'World In Motion' as the official England song for the 2010 World Cup.
 
Aston Villa's Ashley Young Targets Place In England World Cup Squad PDF Print E-mail

Aston Villa's Ashley Young has admitted that he harbours hopes of being named in Fabio Capello's England squad should they qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The versatile midfielder, who can play on either wing as well as in attack, is yet to cement himself firmly in the Three Lions head coach's plans.

However, the 23-year-old is looking to maintain the form that has seen him pick up the PFA Young Player of the Year award for the 2008-09 campaign in order to add to the four international caps he has won to date.

"I’ve been involved in the England squad and I want more caps. Fingers crossed I can get on the plane to the World Cup," Young is quoted as saying by The Sun.

The 5ft 9in attacking minded star is already used to proving the doubters wrong, despite his relatively tender age.

Aston Villa shelled out around £9.75 million when they signed him from Watford in January 2007, a figure which at the time raised one or two question marks.

"I said from the time the fee was agreed between the two clubs that I just wanted to show I was worth it," Young remarked.

"There were a lot of eyebrows raised and I just wanted to get on the pitch and show I’m worth it. I hope I’ve done that."

Young has scored 8 goals in 45 appearances for the Midlands outfit this season, taking his overall Aston Villa tally to 18 goals in 97 games.

Source: Goal.com

 
Soccer World Cup to boost mobile TV in Africa -NSN PDF Print E-mail

More than 10 mobile television broadcasting networks will be opened in Africa in time for the soccer world championships next year, said a senior official at Nokia Siemens Networks, a mobile TV technology provider.

Mobile television broadcasting, the hottest upcoming feature for cellphones only a few years ago, has so far found demand in only a few countries, but the industry is looking for the 2010 World Cup as an opportunity to turn the tide.

Stefan Schneiders, the head of Business Development for Mobile TV at Nokia Siemens, said he expects many African countries to shortly follow Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and Namibia, who have launched mobile TV broadcasts.
 
The World Cup, one of the world's most closely followed sports event, will be held in South Africa in June-July 2010.
 
"It is a very, very good opportunity. If you are a mobile operator you need something to link your marketing activity with," Schneiders told Reuters in an interview.
 
World football's governing body FIFA has forecast a record TV audience in Africa for the World Cup, with the cumulative global television audience seen on par with 26.3 billion reached for the 2006 event.
 
FIFA would be also offering live coverage specifically produced for mobile phones for the first time.
 
The most successful European mobile TV broadcasting network was launched in Italy ahead of 2006 World Cup.
 
Phone makers and operators are keen to tap the potentially lucrative market for mobile TV broadcasts, which is expected to reach 7.8 billion euros ($10.39 billion) globally in 2013.
But the takeup has so far been held back by a number of factors -- including lack of a clear business model, fights for broadcasting rights, lack of frequencies, numerous different technologies competing for the leading position, and a lack of affordable phone models.
 
Schneiders said many of these problems have either been solved or they will be solved in the near future, helping a service which was hyped few years too early.

Nokia Siemens Networks sells hardware and software to operators, including Nokia's Mobile Broadcast Solution, which the world's top cellphone maker sold to India's Wipro earlier this year.

Source: Reuters

 
Frank Rijkaard Going To South Africa On Bidvest Wits’ Invitation PDF Print E-mail

Former Barcelona coach and Dutch legend Frank Rijkaard and a number of Dutch football coaches will spend a week in Johannesburg from May 14 on the invitation of PSL (Premier Soccer League) club Bidvest Wits.

The Dutch coaches will be hosting football clinics with 20 of South Africa’s ex-professional players (SA Soccer Legends), preparing for a community project started by Bidvest Wits in partnership with the Netherlands Embassy and the Hillbrow police services.

The project will be launched at John Orr Technical School in Johannesburg on the May 14, 2009. This community project involves the youth from selected schools and shelters in and around the Hillbrow area. The main objective of the program is to reduce crime levels in the area by bridging the gap and building a trusting relationship between the youth and the Police.

“BIDVest Wits Football Club has a responsibility towards the development of the youth in our country and what better place to start this than the area closer to the clubs home base, where we can also decrease crime,” said Bidvest Wits chief executive Stan Whiting.

The idea behind this important initiative is that someone referred to as a 'Community Coach', who is an individual skilled in three basic things; football, life skills and crime prevention knowledge, plays a role such that the youth he interacts with are able to relate and trust him with information that they wouldn’t normally tell a teacher, police or even a parent.

The Netherlands instructors from KNVB, including Rijkaard, will interact with the SA Soccer Legends for a week to pass on their knowledge in soccer development, which will include theory sessions in a classroom.

“It gives me great pleasure to be involved in a sustainable community project such as this one, the development of the youth in football is very important in every country,” said Rijkaard in a statement to SuperSport.

Rijkaard was born in Amsterdam, is a Dutch football manager and former player. He has played for Ajax, Real Zaragoza and Milan, and represented his national side 73 times, scoring ten goals. During his coaching role at Barcelona he worked with stars such as Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o, Deco and Lionel Messi, making his contribution in football matters of the highest value.

“We are honoured to have a legend like Frank Rijkaard endorse our project. With the support of the Netherlands, the Bidvest Group and Wits University, we can take the program further and beyond 2010, therefore keeping it sustainable and involving more children as we grow,” added Whiting.

Source: Goal.com

Last Updated on Thursday, 07 May 2009 10:46
 
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