Nigeria Bans Own Football Team From International Competitions

The Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has announced that his government will ban its football/soccer team from international competitions. The ban is to last two years and is the result of what transpired in the World Cup.

Nigeria was supposed to be one of the greatest teams in Group B that would help Africa win its first World Cup at home. The result was a loss to Argentina and Greece as well as a draw against South Korea leaving it in last place in its group standings.

The decision has sent shock waves through the sports (especially football/soccer) community with FIFA warning of consequences for the ban. FIFA has a set of rules that prohibit government interference in soccer with penalties such as an outright ban.

FIFA has banned countries such as Iraq and El Salvador secondary to government interference. It has also warned French President Nicholas Sarkozy that France may be banned if his government interferes with the FFF or French Football Federation.

I agree that government and sports should be separated. The decision by the Nigerian Government to prohibit its football/soccer association from participating in international competitions for two years is an example of such interference.

The decision itself may also set back Nigerian Football/Soccer since two years will be wasted by the players and management in that country. The ban will remove any motivation for improvement and the team could either do poorly in future competitions or not classify.

It remains to be seen how this will play out.