The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed that its investigation into the utilisation of the \u20a612 billion Federal Government intervention fund released to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) is ongoing.<\/p>\n
EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, confirmed this on Thursday while responding to inquiries about the status of the investigation.<\/p>\n
\u201cInvestigation is ongoing on the matter,\u201d Oyewale said.<\/p>\n
The probe follows reports that the EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) had commenced inquiries into how the intervention fund, approved by President Bola Tinubu in 2024, was utilised.<\/p>\n
The money was reportedly released to enable the NFF settle outstanding wages and bonuses owed to players and officials of Nigeria\u2019s national football teams.<\/p>\n
A source familiar with the investigation said some officials connected with the administration of the fund had been invited by investigators and had provided statements.<\/p>\n
The identities of those invited were not disclosed, while there has been no confirmation that anyone has been arrested or charged in connection with the investigation.<\/p>\n
The EFCC\u2019s confirmation means only that an investigation is underway and does not constitute a finding of wrongdoing against any individual or official of the football federation.<\/p>\n
The development comes amid a major leadership transition at the NFF following the resignation of its president, Ibrahim Gusau, after three years and 11 months in office.<\/p>\n
Gusau announced his resignation at a press conference in Abuja, saying he took the decision after consultations with his family and friends.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have decided to resign my position as the president of NFF, after consultations with my family and friends,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have also advised my board members, those who are willing, to resign as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gusau said he could not immediately confirm how many members of the board had also resigned because those affected had yet to formally communicate their decisions to him.<\/p>\n
There has been no official indication linking Gusau\u2019s resignation to the EFCC investigation, and he did not cite the probe as a reason for stepping down.<\/p>\n
His resignation, however, comes amid increased scrutiny of Nigerian football following a series of disappointing results by the country\u2019s national teams.<\/p>\n
The Super Eagles failed to qualify for the 2022 and 2026 FIFA World Cups, while the Super Falcons also missed qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n
Nigeria\u2019s age-grade teams have similarly struggled, with the Golden Eaglets failing to qualify for the FIFA U-17 World Cup in three consecutive editions.<\/p>\n
Despite his departure, Gusau said he remained willing to contribute to the development of Nigerian football, citing his experience and relationships within African football.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, I want to make it clear that, by the grace of God, we will continue to give our contribution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur experience, connections and relationships within African football will never go in vain. We will do our best to ensure that whenever we are needed, we will contribute to the progress of Nigerian football.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gusau also defended aspects of his administration\u2019s record, highlighting initiatives in coaching education, refereeing, league administration and infrastructure development.<\/p>\n
He said the federation had organised CAF B and C Licence coaching programmes, as well as a Coaching Instructors\u2019 Course, while a CAF A Licence programme was scheduled to commence on September 16.<\/p>\n
According to him, the NFF had also introduced younger referees into the system and expanded training opportunities, with Nigerian officials participating in major continental and international competitions, including the FIFA U-17 World Cup and the Women\u2019s Africa Cup of Nations.<\/p>\n
On infrastructure, Gusau said his administration identified inadequate facilities as one of the major constraints facing Nigerian football and sought to address the challenge through FIFA development funding.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a board, we sat down and identified infrastructure as one of our greatest needs. We also recognised the need for permanent accommodation and training facilities for our national teams, and we are currently working on that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has confirmed that its investigation into the utilisation of the \u20a612 billion Federal Government intervention fund released to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) is ongoing. EFCC spokesman, Dele Oyewale, confirmed this on Thursday while responding to inquiries about the status of the investigation. \u201cInvestigation is ongoing on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":48695,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-92426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t