Edo Queens Chairman Accuses NFF of Abandoning Club, Vows to Take CAF Dispute to CAS

By Marian Alekhue

The Chairman of Edo Queens Football Club, Jarrett Tenebe, has accused the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) of abandoning the club in its ongoing dispute with the Confederation of African Football (CAF) over the controversial conclusion of the WAFU Zone B Women’s Champions League qualifying final against Ghana’s Ampem Darkoa Ladies.

Tenebe, who spoke during a television interview, said Edo Queens was not receiving the necessary institutional support from the NFF despite following the required procedure in petitioning CAF over the disputed match.

The Edo Queens chairman maintained that the club had a genuine case and would pursue the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) if CAF failed to deliver justice.

The controversy followed the WAFU Zone B qualifying final played in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, where Edo Queens initially emerged victorious through a penalty shootout and were presented with medals.

According to Tenebe, the dispute arose because the match was supposed to proceed to extra time of 15 minutes per half before a penalty shootout. He alleged that the Ghanaian side protested the outcome and subsequently appealed, prompting further proceedings over the result.

He explained that Edo Queens initially decided against taking the matter to CAF but later pursued the case after the governing body issued a decision directing that the remaining part of the match be played under the same sporting conditions, including the same venue, pitch and players.

However, Tenebe said the club became dissatisfied when CAF directed both teams to travel to Egypt for the continuation of the match instead of returning to the original venue in Ouagadougou.

He also raised concerns that two Edo Queens players were unavailable because they were participating in a FIFA World Cup competition, arguing that the directive requiring the same players to feature could no longer be fulfilled.

According to him, the pitch provided in Egypt was also different and smaller than the one used for the original encounter.

Tenebe said Edo Queens had made its objections known before the match and informed the organisers that it would challenge the process regardless of the outcome.

He explained that the club eventually travelled to Egypt because it did not want to be accused of refusing to comply with CAF’s directive, which could have resulted in a walkover in favour of its opponents.

“We have the same case Ghana has. That is the reason why we made this protest, and we believe CAF will listen to us the way they listened to Ghana,” he said.

The chairman disclosed that Edo Queens submitted its petition to CAF within 12 hours after the disputed encounter, adding that the continental football governing body acknowledged receipt of the complaint.

He said the petition was also forwarded to the NFF on the same day, although the federation only acknowledged receiving it the following day.

Tenebe, however, expressed disappointment over what he described as the NFF’s lack of support, alleging that the federation’s silence was connected to political considerations surrounding Nigeria’s representation in CAF.

He suggested that the federation had been reluctant to take a firm position because of efforts to secure a Nigerian’s appointment to a senior position within the continental football governing body.

The Edo Queens chairman further disclosed that the club was prepared to escalate the dispute to the Court of Arbitration for Sport if CAF failed to address its grievances.

He warned that proceeding with the competition while the petition remained unresolved could expose subsequent decisions to legal challenges.

“If we don’t get justice, we’ll go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport because we know we have a genuine case,” Tenebe declared.

He insisted that the dispute was not over and expressed confidence that CAF would consider the club’s petition on its merits.

The outcome of the petition could determine whether the controversial qualifying final would stand or whether the clubs would be required to play another decisive encounter to settle the WAFU Zone B representation in the CAF Women’s Champions League.