World football governing body, FIFA has called an emergency meeting of its highest governing body, the Council, to reach a verdict on Nigeria’s petition against DR Congo, Sports247 gathered
Although the matter had been discussed extensively by members of FIFA’s disciplinary committee into the late hours of Monday, the issue is considered ‘too weighty’ to be handled at that level.
Considering the high-profile nature of the protest lodged by Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), especially with political implications also noted in the petition, members of the disciplinary committee agreed to refer the verdict to the highest authority.
In line with that suggestion, the matter was on Monday referred to the FIFA Council, which then convened an emergency meeting in Zurich, Switzerland.
Various angles to the protest and several contending views will now be considered by a wider range of football egg heads in the FIFA Council, which is the global body’s highest decision-making unit.
The FIFA Council, which former NFF boss, Amaju Melvin Pinnick belonged to until last year, has 28 members, eight vice-presidents and one president.
The 28 members are elected from across the six continental confederations of the world and the Council is headed by FIFA president, Gianni Infantino.
Tuesday’s deliberations on the NFF’s petition are bound to be all-inclusive, as egg heads expected in attendance include Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa (AFC), Alejandro Dominguez (CONMEBOL), Vittorio Montagliani (CONCACAF), Aleksander Ceferin (UEFA), Lambert Maltock (OFC) and Patrice Motsepe (CAF).
The emergency session will deliberate at length on the NFF’s petition and DR Congo’s response, both of which FIFA’s Ethics Committee discussed on Monday and referred its findings to the Council for final approval.
