Following the official ceremony, FIFA President met with the FIFA team working at the regional office
The trip to Brazzaville also included separate meetings for
the FIFA President with the President of the Republic of the Congo Denis Sassou
Nguesso, the Minister of Sport of the Republic of the Congo, Hugues
Ngouélondélé, and the President of the Congolese Football Association
(FECOFOOT), Jean-Guy Mayolas.
“It is very important for FIFA to be present here today to
listen to our member associations in central Africa and work together,” the
FIFA President said at the ceremony. “We are doing this with the FIFA Forward
programme that helps member associations, and that investment has been
multiplied by five since I arrived at FIFA. We are here today with the staff of
our regional development office to help the member associations, also together
with CAF, to work hand-in-hand to tackle the challenges we face in the region.”
“We increased the number of African national teams eligible
to qualify for the FIFA World Cup in 2026 from five to nine or ten. So there is
work to be done so that African teams don’t just participate in the FIFA World
Cup 2026, but shine there,” he added. “FIFA wants to see African football reach
the highest of heights and we are certain that our network of regional offices
will complement the work already underway to elevate African football.”
In 2017, FIFA took the decision to establish FIFA Regional
Development Offices around the world in order to better serve its member
associations and to be closer to their needs. Four of these offices are located
in Africa: Dakar in Senegal, Johannesburg in South Africa, Brazzaville in the
Republic of the Congo and Kigali in Rwanda.
Following the official ceremony, FIFA President met with the
FIFA team working at the regional office, which is also located in the same
building as FECOFOOT. The team has been operational since November 2020, but
due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the office could not be officially
inaugurated until today.
Prior to the inauguration, the FIFA President met with
Hugues Ngouélondélé, the Minister of Sport, to discuss how to elevate African
football to the highest levels on the world stage, before a second meeting took
place at Brazzaville International Airport with President of the Republic of
the Congo, Denis Sassou Nguesso. Discussions with the Republic of the Congo’s
head of state focused on the opening of the FIFA Regional Development Office in
Brazzaville and the important role that football plays in the country and
across the region, as well as the recent success of the men’s national football
team, the Red Devils, who reached the quarter-finals of last month’s CAF
African Nations Championship (CHAN).
“Today’s meeting with President Sassou Nguesso was extremely
positive and we are delighted with the strong support both he, and the
government of the Republic of the Congo, has provided this new facility,” the
FIFA President said. “Passion for football is very strong here, and we hope to
encourage and develop the game even further through our new office.”
“On November 29, 2019, during your first visit, FIFA and the
Republic of the Congo government agreed to install in Brazzaville, historic
capital of African Olympism, the FIFA Regional Development Office for central
Africa,” said FECOFOOT President Jean-Guy Mayolas. “On behalf of my colleagues,
my fellow presidents of the federations of central Africa, I express all our
gratitude. We can now say, that we are more close to FIFA and our various
projects will be better managed and will have a happy outcome, for the positive
development of football in central Africa. This is proof that Africa is your
favourite land, and it is also proof of your commitment to support African
football, which was a commitment you made during your election campaign to
FIFA.”
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