By Daniel Edu
Former Super Eagles coach Samson Siasia has confirmed that his FIFA ban will come to an end in August 2024.
In August 2019, Siasia, once regarded as one of Nigeria’s top coaches, received a $50,000 fine and a ban from all football-related activities for his involvement in approving “the manipulation of matches” for betting purposes, following an investigation into matches allegedly manipulated by Wilson Perumal.
However, in 2021, the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced his suspension to five years after Siasia filed an appeal, and this five-year ban is set to expire in August 2024.
During an interview with Kennis 104.1FM, Siasia expressed his eagerness to return to football and reiterated his claim that he had not committed any wrongdoing.
He stated, “I thought I was going to be free by this year (2023) and I was so excited. But I had to look through the document that FIFA served me, and I found out that it was going to be next year. By next year, in August 2024, I will be free from the FIFA ban, and hopefully, I will be back in football.”
Siasia also expressed gratitude that FIFA, after initially imposing a lifetime ban on him, could not substantiate their allegations against him, resulting in the ban being reduced to five years.
He said, “Irrespective of what happened, I have learned my lessons, but FIFA, who initially gave me a life ban in football, could not prove anything wrong with what they claimed I did. But they had to reduce it to a five-year ban, and it will expire next year. I thank God for that.”
Siasia, who had a successful career in football management after retiring from professional football, achieved a remarkable feat when he guided the Nigerian men’s Under-23 squad to two Olympic medals – silver in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and bronze at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. He remains the only Nigerian coach to lead a team to win two Olympic medals at two different editions.
