FIFA President Gianni Infantino vowed to support the growth and development of football in Sudan during a visit to the capital Khartoum earlier this week.
Infantino met with the chairman of the Transitional Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Minister of Youth and Sports, Yousif Adam Aldai, and president of the Sudan Football Association (SFA), Kamal Shaddad.
Infantino’s discussions with al-Burhan and Aldai centred on how world football’s governing body could best support Sudan to further develop and strengthen the sport through the FIFA Football for Schools programme.
“Now we must work together, to bring the success of the past to the future. I can guarantee that FIFA will work closely with the whole football community in Sudan, with women and men, to continue to develop football and to bring Sudan back where it deserves to be, at the top of African football,” Infantino said.
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“We spoke with the Chairman of the transitional sovereignty committee about investment in football, because there is incredible talent in the country to be developed.”
They also discussed the restoration of the Khartoum Stadium, the venue of the first-ever Africa Cup of Nations.
“I was saddened when I visited Khartoum Stadium and witnessed its current state. This is an historical venue and we need to protect and cherish its history. We will invest and work together with the government and the SFA to make everyone in Sudan proud of the stadium again,” Infantino told reporters.
The FIFA boss also lauded the SFA for its efforts in growing girls’ and women’s football and incorporating the sport into the education system.
“We spoke about football being part of the school system and about women’s and girls’ football – a very important area of the game. The Sudan Football Association is already doing excellent work in this regard, and it can only increase once combined with the continued support of the Sudanese government and FIFA.”
“We are all part of the same team, and we will all work together and show that we care about the people of Sudan and football here,” he said.
Sudan has great historical significance in African football. Sudan, together with Egypt, Ethiopia and South Africa, was one of the founding members of the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
The country was CAF’s first headquarters, and it also hosted the first-ever African Cup of Nations in 1957. Sudan was also one of the first African countries to join the world football governing body.
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