FIFA has stirred controversy by appointing South African officers for the 2026 World Cup playoff between the Tremendous Eagles of Nigeria and Panthers of Gabon.
Tom Abongile will function centre referee, Zakhele Siwela will take up the function of assistant referee whereas one other South African, Akhona Makalima, will likely be in control of Video Assistant Referee, VAR.
Bafana Bafana of South Africa beat Nigeria to the automated qualification ticket in Group C.
Hugo Broos’ aspect nonetheless practically missed out on the ticket after they had been made to forfeit three factors and three targets for fielding an ineligible participant (Teboho Mokoena) in opposition to Lesotho.
South African officers accused their Nigerian counterparts for pushing for them to be sanctioned by FIFA.
Gayton McKenzie, South Africa’s Sports activities Minister, reportedly acknowledged his want for Nigeria to not qualify for the World Cup.
The choice to nominate South African officers for the sport with Gabon has sparked a wave of controversy, significantly amongst Nigerian soccer stakeholders, who’ve questioned FIFA’s neutrality in making the appointment.
Tremendous Eagles will face Gabon within the semi-final of the playoffs on the El Barid Stadium, Rabat, subsequent week Thursday.
