Gov. Babatunde Fashola Receives CAF President, Issa Hayatou

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FASHOLA RECEIVES CAF PRESIDENT, ISSA HAYATOU

…Urges Continental football body to bring the economy of the game to Africa
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN) on Wednesday received the President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), Alhaji Issa Hayatou on a courtesy visit, tasking the Continental football body to bring the economy of football to Africa after the success of bringing the World Cup and World Clubs Football Championship to Africa.

The Governor who received Alhaji Hayatou and a delegation of top football administrators in Africa and Nigeria at Lagos House, said achieving this would a defining legacy for the CAF President. “Sir, that for me would be your most defining legacy, we cannot have so much unemployment with so much passion for the game and we play football that is not made in Africa. We use goal posts that are not made in Africa, we wear jerseys that are not made in Africa, we wear hoses and boots. To that economy, we must find a way”, he said.

According to the Governor, with the right economic rewards, African players would love to play on African soil. The only reason why Samuel Etoo is playing in Chelsea and so many of the Cameroonian players and Mikel Obi is the economic reason. The football is not different, it bounces the same way and they are playing with gloves now because it is very cold, they would rather play here if we can create the economy here. That is for me the new partnership that you and I and all football administrators must address to use sports as a tool for global harmony, as a tool for economic emancipation”, he explained.

He also charged the football chief to leverage on the successes already recorded by the African Continent in World football by attracting more international technical support for the development of African football leagues.

He added that it would be a kind of support that ensures that all Clubs own their pitches and well laid out football fields with natural grass.

He described the support as a developmental agenda maintaining that Africans love their football but the money is not in Africa and that it is the expertise and technical support that is now needed to keep the economy in the Continent.

Governor Fashola also saluted the leadership that Alhaji Hayatou has provided for African football because under his watch, the World Cup has really become a World Cup because it has come to Africa, adding that it also speaks volume about the kind of image and prestige he has built for CAF in the global committee of the Federation of International Football Associations.

“Recently I observed that the World Clubs Championship was also hosted in Africa by Morocco and I think that was also the first time that it is happening. When you begin to get South American champions and European champions like Bayern Munich playing on African soil, it attest to the quality of work that you and those who represent Africa in FIFA are doing and it deserves to be commended”, he added.

Speaking earlier, the CAF President, Alhaji Issa Hayatou thanked the Governor for what he has been doing about football in Nigeria as well as Africa adding that it is his duty as CAF President to express appreciation for all the Governor has been doing for African youth and football.

He added that the positive involvement of the country’s authority in the management of football has been bearing good fruits such that the nation has won the African Nations Cup, qualified for the 2014 World Cup, won the U-17 World Cup and also qualified for CHAN.

Alhaji Hayatou identified instability in the management of African Football Associations leading to a situation where most of the African Football Associations keep changing after six months or a year thus depriving CAF the opportunity for partnership on a long term basis.

“So one of the key issues of African football is to try to strengthen the football associations and to avoid them facing such problems that will help us to achieve what you are saying but that would not mean that we cannot do anything at this point. You are already trying to do something and that would be a big help to go for that achievement”, he maintained.

He also invited the Governor to be one of his guests at the GLO CAF awards holding on Thursday in Lagos where the best of African football is celebrated.

The Governor was joined by the Permanent Secretary in the Office of Sports, Dr (Mrs) Biola Awonuga in receiving the CAF President who had top football administrators like President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Aminu Maigari, Mr Amanze Uchegbulam, Dr Amos Adamu and Chief Emeka Inyama among others in his entourage.