Renowned Sports administrator, Ahmed Shuaibu Gara-Gombe, has cautioned against attempts to unseat the President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Gusau, at the forthcoming federation elections.
Gara-Gombe said another leadership change will not solve the country’s football problems but rather worsened the situation. He spoke with newsmen in Abuja on the forthcoming NFF board elections and other football relating matters.
The former Gombe State Football Association boss said that constant changes in leadership of the country’s football have done little to solve the challenges facing the game.
He said Nigeria had spent decades replacing football administrators without addressing the structural flaws, while warning that those advocating a change of leadership were focusing on personalities, instead of the fundamental reforms needed to revive Nigerian football.
“Even if Gusau leaves today as some people are advocating, I swear to God nothing will change in Nigerian football. Don’t be surprised if you remove Gusau today and Nigeria still fails to qualify for the 2030 World Cup” Gara-Gombe said.
The veteran sports administrator described the controversy surrounding every NFF election as a recurring cycle that has persisted for more than 40 years.
Each election season is characterised by disagreements, allegations, court threats and fears of FIFA sanctions, but the contentious issues are quickly forgotten once the elections are concluded.
“For over 40 years, whenever NFF elections come, it is confusion, fighting, threats of sanctions and all kinds of controversies. Once the elections are over, everyone forgets about those issues until another election comes around,” he stressed.
Gara-Gombe blamed what he called widespread hypocrisy among football stakeholders, accusing many administrators, former players and interest groups of speaking out only when their personal interests were no longer being served.
He said that he had followed recent comments from newspaper editors, former internationals, administrators and officials regarding the NFF elections and Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But insisted that much of the criticism directed at Gusau was unfair.
The former Gombe FA chairman, who had intended to contest for the NFF presidency before withdrawing over what he described as unacceptable provisions in the electoral guidelines, maintained that replacing successive NFF boards has never translated into improved results.
“We have changed executive boards from the days of Ibrahim Galadima, yet the problems remain exactly the same,” Gara-Gombe added.
He noted that Nigeria missed several opportunities over the years to undertake comprehensive reforms of its football administration, including periods when some stakeholders even suggested accepting a FIFA suspension to allow the country’s football structures to be rebuilt.
Instead, he argued, administrators have continued to recycle the same system while expecting different outcomes. Gara-Gombe also defended Gusau’s tenure, saying the incumbent had demonstrated a leadership style different from that of former NFF president Amaju Pinnick.
Gara-Gombe therefore called on stakeholders to rally round the incumbent President, Gusau at the fast approaching NFF Elective Congress, scheduled for September 29th, 2026 in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
