State Football Association (FA) chairmen have welcomed FIFA’s decision to establish a Normalisation Committee for the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), pledging their support for efforts to resolve the federation’s leadership crisis and organise fresh elections.
The chairmen said the committee must work closely with the NFF Congress to ensure a smooth transition to elected leadership and protect the interests of Nigerian football.
Gombe State FA Chairman, Yakubu Sarma, who led a delegation of state FA representatives during recent consultations with FIFA and Confederation of African Football (CAF) officials in Abuja, said the state associations were ready to cooperate with the committee in carrying out its responsibilities.
Sarma stressed that the normalisation process must recognise the role of the NFF Congress, which comprises representatives of the federation’s constituent members.
“As FAs, we welcome the development and will support the Normalisation Committee to meet up with its mandate,” Sarma said.
“One thing is sacrosanct: the committee will not sideline Congress, and Congress will ensure football wins,” he added.
The Bureau of the FIFA Council approved the committee’s appointment on Thursday following months of uncertainty surrounding the NFF leadership after the departure of former president Ibrahim Gusau and other board members.
In a letter signed by FIFA Secretary-General Mattias Grafström and addressed to Dr Emmanuel Ikpeme, FIFA stated that the committee would comprise an appropriate number of members jointly appointed by FIFA and CAF.
The committee is expected to oversee the federation’s affairs and organise fresh elections into the NFF Executive Committee. Its mandate will end upon completion of its assigned responsibilities, with May 31, 2027, set as the final deadline.
FIFA also stipulated that members of the committee would not be eligible to contest any positions in the forthcoming NFF elections.
Sarma said the decision was anticipated by state FA chairmen, arguing that caretaker and interim leadership arrangements were inconsistent with the established governance framework of FIFA and CAF.
“Long before now, we knew it was going to be normalisation, because caretaker or interim arrangements are alien to FIFA and CAF statutes,” he said.
He explained that the state associations had previously advocated a solution that would reflect the realities of Nigerian football while remaining consistent with the existing structures of the federation.
“All we agitated for was home-grown modalities in resolving the leadership vacuum, but with the NSC running to FIFA and some maladministration issues that followed, it became impossible and prompted FIFA to intervene,” Sarma said.
The leadership crisis had divided stakeholders over the best approach to restoring stability, with some calling for elections through existing NFF structures and others supporting a FIFA-backed committee to supervise the transition and address governance concerns.
FIFA’s latest decision provides a framework for resolving the impasse, although the names of the committee members and further details of its operations are yet to be announced.
Until the committee is constituted, the NFF Secretariat will continue managing the federation’s day-to-day activities.
Sarma’s remarks highlight the state FA chairmen’s position that the NFF Congress must remain involved in decisions affecting the future of Nigerian football.
The committee’s work is expected to focus on stabilising the federation, addressing outstanding governance issues and conducting fresh elections within the timeframe established by FIFA.
