Fifa president Gianni Infantino has announced more financial support towards promoting the game in Uganda and Africa as a continent, MOSES MUGALU & NICHOLAS BAMULANZEKI report.
As he wound up his first trip to Uganda on Saturday, Fifa president Gianni Infantino assured the world football body will continue funding development projects in Africa because the continent has ‘true potential.’
“Africa is, for me, a priority. I believe there is a true potential we can exploit,” said the head of Fifa, world football’s governing body.
Infantino, who arrived in the country on Friday night and held talks with President Museveni, explained that Fifa’s investment in African football associations has increased from $27m to $94m ever since 2016 when he came into office.
“These are not nice words from the Fifa president; they are concrete actions for football development,” he said, adding: “I’m here for football, and not politics.”
Local football-governing body Fufa is one of the African associations benefiting from Fifa’s multi-million-dollar funding aid. Fufa’s administrative block in Mengo and a fully-fledged technical centre in Njeru have been built on Fifa monies. On Saturday morning, Infantino launched another project to develop a pitch at Kadiba, not very far from Fufa offices in Mengo.
However, Infantino’s latest cash offer of one million dollars (or Shs 3.5 billion) will go to Cecafa, the regional 10-nation grouping that has been on its deathbed due to bankruptcy.
In the last two years, Cecafa has barely organized its major tournaments such as the Cecafa Senior Challenge Cup and Club championships. But there should have not better news for the regional body than Infantino’s pronouncement of one million dollars offer every year for organizing competitions.
Infantino said Fifa will give the same amount to other regional football bodies including Cosafa for Southern Africa.
Africa is also set to benefit from Infantino’s 48-team World Cup idea, with the continent’s slots expected to increase from five to probably 10. Infantino dismissed claims that his latest trip to Africa (he had a stop in South Africa before coming to Uganda) was partly to lobby support for Madagascar’s FA boss Ahmad Ahmad, who wants to unseat long-serving
Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Issa Hayatou. The Caf polls are due next month.
“It’s not up to the Fifa president to make recommendations or come up with a choice…. I will be happy to work with any president African associations elect,” he said.
Fufa president Moses Magogo said the Ugandan FA is yet to decide on Caf vote but in two days, the executive will meet to make their preferred candidate choice. Infantino also concurred that Uganda needs modern sports legislation, a contentious issue which pitied the National Council of Sports (NCS) against Fufa until Fifa intervened last year for sanity to prevail.
The Fifa boss met the Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga on Saturday morning and the issue of a proper sporting law for the country was discussed.
mugalu@observer.ug
nicholasbamulanzeki@gmail.com