NFF appoints first woman to head referees committee

The Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) has appointed Faith Irabor as the head of the referees’ committee of the Nigerian FA, making her the first woman to occupy that position.

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This inauguration took place in Abuja on Sunday ahead of the resumption of the 2022/23 Nigeria Professional Football League.

The referees’ committee is mandated by the NFF to deal with referees and other officiating-related matters across the domestic competitions in Nigeria, with the appointment taking immediate effect for the period of two years, from 2023 to 2025.

Prior to her appointment, Irabor, is a retired FIFA referee, former CAF Referee Instructor, the first Vice President of the Nigeria Referees Association since 2019 and also previously served as the Director of Sports of the Edo State Sports Ministry.

On her historic appointment as the first woman to head the refs committee, Irabor told newsmen, “I’m excited because It is an opportunity to bring my experience on board as I have been in the field for years, as a retired FIFA referee, and a one-time CAF instructor up until five years ago.

“I am in very familiar terrain. So, for Nigeria, it is a huge task and the president has promised to give us a level playing ground and we will do our best to change the narratives.

“As a woman, I have always enjoyed landmark achievements when FIFA was picking referees for the first time in 1995, I was one of them. For the first time, I was among the first eight CAF instructors as, that’s technical, and the first woman.

“In our Nigeria Referees Association, I’m also the first woman to be first vice president. It’s like I operate more in the men’s world. So, it’s not new to me. I’m used to it. I have been in the league with men and was once the best Referee of the Year.”

MTO/punch