Unam's Clever Boys tread carefully

Limba MupetamiWINDHOEK At a time when various football clubs and supporters have been making their allegiance to the Namibia Football Association (NFA) and its proposed top-tier league clear, the University of Namibia's (Unam) football club has remained on the sidelines, watching the drama unfold. Unam made it a point to only announce its standing on the final day of confirmation to the league invitation, explaining in a letter that its stance is not a refusal to take up the invitation, but rather a cautionary approach. This, the club said, is to ensure that it does not act to its own detriment pending the finalisation of the legal dispute between the NFA and the Namibia Premier League (NPL). Impartial Unam said the invitation from the NFA is premature at this point in time. “The NPL, to which Unam is still a member, is inter alia contesting its suspension from the NFA and seeks relief declaring the suspension unlawful. “It is common cause that NFA has since moved to expel the NPL as a member of the NFA at the extraordinary congress of 22 July.” The football club further said it will only be in a good position to make an informed decision once the dispute between the NFA and the NPL at the Court of Sport Arbitration has been finalised.Finishing fourth on the log in the 2018/2019 season, Unam said it would, at the conclusion of the legal dispute, “automatically affiliate to the league as directed by the court,” the letter read. Fifa's stance Meanwhile, over the weekend, football governing body Fifa, through its chief member associations officer, Veron Mosengo-Omba, announced that it does not recognise the NPL's plans to organise a breakaway league in Namibia. “We emphasise that the existence of a breakaway league in Namibia is unacceptable, and that all leagues on the territory of the NFA must be subordinated to and recognised by the NFA,” Mosengo-Omba said. Uefa to lend a hand Despite the infighting and uncertainty regarding football kicking off any time soon, the Union of European Football Associations (Uefa) has written positively to the ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations office at Geneva, Penda Naanda, who enquired about a possible Memorandum of Understanding with the NFA. “In response, I'm pleased to inform you that the head of international relations at Uefa, Eva Pasquier, has already been in contact with Haikali regarding how Uefa will be able to build on the assistance we have provided to NFA thus far,” Aleksader Ceferin, the president of Uefa, said. The Namibia Sports Commission will today hold a press conference in Windhoek to update the nation on all pending football matters.

Unam's Clever Boys tread carefully

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-07-15

Please login to leave a comment

Unam's Clever Boys tread carefully

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-07-15

Please login to leave a comment

Login