The Nigeria Football Federation has warned that clubs that fail to honour matches during the national preliminary stage of this year’s President’s Federation Cup will face a fine of ₦1 million.
The directive was announced on Monday by the NFF Director of Competitions, Ruth David, as preparations gather momentum for the country’s oldest football tournament.
According to the NFF, the state preliminary rounds of the competition will be held from March 22 to April 26 across the country.
The state qualifiers will begin on Sunday, March 22, with clubs required to honour all fixtures once they have completed registration for the competition at the state level.
David explained that any club that fails to appear for a scheduled match after registration during the state preliminaries will be sanctioned with a fine of ₦500,000.
However, clubs that default at the national preliminary stage will face a stiffer penalty of ₦1 million.
She also directed that the final matches in the various state competitions must be played either on Saturday, April 25 or Sunday, April 26.
Following the conclusion of the state finals, each State Football Association and the Federal Capital Territory will be required to submit two representatives to compete in the national phase of the tournament.
The President’s Federation Cup, formerly known as the FA Cup, remains Nigeria’s oldest domestic football competition and traditionally provides clubs from across the country an opportunity to compete for national honours.
SOURCE: SPORTSVILLAGESQUARE