The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will on Thursday officially decorate 30 referees with FIFA badges, granting them the authority to officiate at international matches in 2025.

NFF President, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, will oversee the ceremony alongside NFF Referees Committee Chairperson,  Faith Irabor, General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, and Head of NFF Refereeing Unit, Alhaji Sani Zubairu.

The 30 referees include: 11 referees, 11 assistant referees, 4 futsal referees and 4 beach soccer referees.

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A total of 22 are male, while 8 are female. Among the 11 referees, three are women, while five of the assistant referees are also female. All futsal and beach soccer referees are male.

Three referees are new to the FIFA category: Emmanuel Omada (assistant referee), John Tope Ojeleye (futsal referee) and Noah Adejoh (beach soccer referee).

The longest-serving referees include: Samuel Pwadutakam (assistant referee) & Ndubuisi Ukah (futsal referee) – FIFA referees since 2014, Dung Davou Musa (futsal referee) – International since 2015, Salisu Basheer (referee), Tejiri Digbori (assistant referee) & Olawale Fawole (beach soccer referee) – On FIFA’s list since 2016, Hannah Elaigwu (referee), Joseph Ogabor (referee) & Abdulmajid Usman (assistant referee) – FIFA-certified since 2017.

Head of Sports at BusinessDay Media, a seasoned Digital Content Producer, and FIFA/CAF Accredited Journalist with over a decade of sports reporting.Has a deep understanding of the Nigerian and global sports landscape and skills in delivering comprehensive and insightful sports content.

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