The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has debunked rumour that world football governing body FIFA banned Moshood Abiola Stadium in Abuja from hosting matches.
Rumour of the ban was fuelled by the crowd trouble which followed the Super Eagles’ loss to Ghana on Tuesday and the failure to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar.
Responding to the allegations, NFF general secretary Mohammed Sanusi said on Friday, “We are alarmed at the influx of incorrect reports, otherwise known as fake news, mostly in the social media.
“There is no truth to the reports that the Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja has been banned for any length of time by FIFA. It is a concoction by some persons with fertile imagination. The NFF has not received any such communication from either FIFA or CAF.”
The NFF also said reports that the video assistant referee equipment for the match had been damaged were false.
“There has also been an outlandish report that the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) equipment that was installed for the match had been stolen. We initially thought this was an April Fool prank but it is alarming that some media outlets are taking it serious. Nothing of such happened. The VAR equipment remains intact and has been returned to the FIFA office in Zurich, Switzerland by Sebastian Runge, FIFA’s Head of Technology,” he said.
Sanusi added that although there is disappointment over Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the World Cup in November, the NFF believes “that the present squad of Super Eagles is still capable of achieving great things.”
The Amaju Pinnick-led NFF has come under criticism for Nigeria’s failure to beat Ghana for a place at football’s biggest event.
