The Confederation of African Football (CAF) hasMusa Dung Davou announced the inclusion of a Nigerian referee, Musa Dung Davou, among the match officials for the upcoming Futsal African Nations Cup tournament.
Dung Davou from Jos Plateau State, the referee is recognised as one of the Futsal FIFA referees from Nigeria, having successfully passed fitness and medical tests, demonstrating readiness for the competition.
In Nigerian Referee Association’s history, the closest a Nigerian referee came to officiating at the FIFA World Cup was in 2013 when FIFA Peter Elgam Edibi made the provisional list for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Meanwhile, the last time a Nigerian referee served as the centre referee in a Nations Cup game was in 2006, marking 18 years since a Nigerian referee officiated at the tournament.
The Confederation of African Football in 2021 revealed a list of 63 referees to oversee games at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon. Of them, just one Nigerian, Samuel Pwadutakam, was chosen.
Breaking a longstanding trend, despite being a futsal competition, the inclusion of a Nigerian as one of the match officials for a football-based game played on a hardcourt like a basketball court marks a significant milestone.
