How prepared are we? The Niger Delta crisis, poor energy situation, poor infrastructure and risingpolitical instability, are we ready to host this world cup. It would be a massive disaster if we screw up again.

The 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup is the thirteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. It is officially confirmed by FIFA that the tournament will held in Nigeria.
Venues
City Stadium Capacity
Abuja Abuja Stadium 60,000
Enugu Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium 25,000
Bauchi Abubarkar Tafawa Balewa Stadium 25,000
Lagos Teslim Balogun Stadium 20,000
Kano Sani Abacha Stadium 25,000
Warri Warri Township Stadium 20,000

I thought Nigeria has hosted something of that nature in 1999. The government really needs to clean up the Niger-Delta mess so that it can organise such a worldwide event.

I din't know about the Niger River crisis. And I don't know if Nigeria can host the U17 World cup with those kinds of conditions!

The competition is no longer up for grabs because Nigeria already have the hosting rights at the moment....it's easy....just don't play any match in the Niger Delta.

The Niger Delta will lose out in so many ways if the don't give peace or dialogue a chance. Unfortunately the struggle have been taken over by criminals.

I'm so worried that Nigeria may blow this perfectly great oppurtunity to host the world at something which would benefit the nation and help our image.

Nigeria have already hosted something like this before, and I'm sure that Nigeria will go ahead and host it next year. We are a world heavyweight in the youth division. Fifa has already expressed some satisfaction after the country addressed some of the issues lamented by Fifa.

We could even host some matches in the Niger Delta, if the Government were serious about it, I am sure they could definitely guarantee security there. Afterall a lot of the cities in the Niger Delta are not exactly consumed with violence, places like Calabar and Uyo are generally safe most of the militancy occurs near the creeks and even then like I said earlier I am sure the Feds could hold the militants off from upstaging anything.

The Tinapa Soccer Fiesta for example, would have been held in Calabar as initially planned if the stadium there was of adequate size.

any projects goin on with this tournament? any stadium being built or renovated? pictures?

Yar’Adua to unveil Nigeria 2009 logo, mascot
Written by vanguard
Friday, 28 November 2008

AS the countdown to the FIFA Under-17 World Cup, Nigeria 2009, begins, President Umaru Yar’Adua will on Dec. 18 unveil the game’s logo and mascot in Abuja.

A statement by Mr Emeka Odikpo, General Manager (Media), of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the championship, said the event would stimulate activities of the LOC toward its countdown.

It said FIFA and CAF officials as well as members of the Federal Executive Council were expected to witness the event.
“The logo, which will also be used for the marketing of the championship, will put marketing activities of the event on a high gear,” it said.

I hope the logo is at least half standard of what we see elsewhere. Knowing how lazy our people are about this would cup, excpect to see the map of Nigeria with a ball beside it or better yet a poorly drawn eagle perched an a ball. The mascot is an Eagle no doubt but please Nigeria prove me very very woefully wrong, please!

I hope the logo is at least half standard of what we see elsewhere. Knowing how lazy our people are about this would cup, excpect to see the map of Nigeria with a ball beside it or better yet a poorly drawn eagle perched an a ball. The mascot is an Eagle no doubt but please Nigeria prove me very very woefully wrong, please!
just like the airlines in nigeria. you can tell a good Nigerian airline by its logo. All the bad ones are now defunct.

What's become of this event?

Gambia lead African charge(FIFA.com)

Gambia will lead a group of African underdogs to the FIFA U-17 World Cup after triumphing in a CAF African U-17 Championship notable for the absence of several of the continent's superpowers. With the likes of Nigeria, Ghana and Côte d'Ivoire all missing from the CAF finals, the Baby Scorpions rose to the challenge of claiming a place at the global showpiece alongside Algeria, Burkina Faso and Malawi, while the Nigerians - as hosts - will further boost the African contingent.

In triumphing, the Gambians regained a trophy they last won just four years ago, following which they went on to the FIFA U-17 World Cup Peru 2005 and claimed impressive victories over Brazil and Qatar. This time, a hugely impressive Baby Scorpions campaign established them beyond doubt as the tournament's most accomplished side.

They kicked off the competition by beating Guinea 1-0 before ending Cameroon's hopes of qualification with a 2-0 defeat and, although they by this stage they had already secured their place at Nigeria 2009, they reinforced their superiority with victory over hosts Algeria in the final group match. However, their best performance came in the semi-finals, when they put four unanswered goals past Malawi. In the final, despite facing an Algerian side backed by a passionate home support, the Gambians rose to the challenge by replicating their group stage win to claim the trophy.

"We played a wonderful tournament, we were full of confidence but never underestimated our opponents," Gambia's Egyptian coach, Tarek El Syagi told FIFA.com. El Syagi had made every effort to ensure that his team were properly prepared, organising a month-long pre-tournament camp in Egypt so that his players could acclimatise to the colder weather of the North African region...


http://www.fifa.com/u17worldcup/news/newsid=1045568.html#gambia+lead+african+charge

warri stadium, one of the stadia to be used for Fifa u17 world cup inNigeria.

1.
http://www.deltastate.gov.ng/images/dectourpix/dectour/sports10.jpg

2.
http://www.deltastate.gov.ng/images/dectourpix/dectour/sports8.jpg

Brazil heading for Nigeria(FIFA.com) Thursday 30 April 2009
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Brazil have joined Argentina in qualifying for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009 after finishing top of the CONMEBOL Group A standings in Iquique, Chile.

Goals from Dodo, Wellington and Romario saw the Brazilians triumph 3-0 over Bolivia and take an unassailable lead on the group ladder with nine points.

Argentina, who made it through to Nigeria by topping Group B on Monday, will meet Brazil on 9 May to determine the South American champions. The two remaining berths to Nigeria will be contested by the four teams finishing second and third in each group.

In the second match of the day, Colombia defeated Peru 2-1 thanks to goals from Jorge Ramos and Carlos Robles. That puts Colombia second in the group with eight points, while Bolivia remain third with four points.

In Group B, Ecuador and Uruguay have qualified for the final round, alongside Colombia and Bolivia. Those four teams will battle it out for the final two South American spots for Nigeria.

LINK (http://www.fifa.com/u17worldcup/news/newsid=1053226.html#brazil+heading+nigeria)

Teams for the FIFA U17 world cup Nigeria 2009 (http://www.fifa.com/u17worldcup/teams/index.html)

Detailed information about Nigerian stadia. (http://www.fussballtempel.net/caf/NGR.html)

It looks like the Warri stadium does not meet 105m by 68m pitch from those photos above, though, the total surface seem to be 125m by 80m.

Is Fifa satisfied with the work done so far? What I read from the internet is that it's the Nigerian inspectors who are saying that at the moment not the Fifa delegates.

Is Fifa satisfied with the work done so far? What I read from the internet is that it's the Nigerian inspectors who are saying that at the moment not the Fifa delegates.

Yellow card to Nigeria
(FIFA.com) Thursday 21 May 2009
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After concluding an inspection visit of the facilities for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009, FIFA has noted a significant delay in the preparations for the tournament, scheduled to take place between 24 October and 15 November 2009. According to FIFA Vice-President and Chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, Jack A. Warner, who led the FIFA delegation, out of nine candidates, only two stadiums are close to being ready.

"Frankly, from an objective point of view, Nigeria is not ready to host the tournament," Chairman Warner said at a press conference today in Lagos. "But I am a man who has always believed in Nigeria and there have been some signs of hope and commitment. Based on those signs of hope I will propose to the FIFA Executive Committee when they meet on 30-31 May in Nassau that we give Nigeria a one month ‘grace period' for six venues to build on the signs of hope and commitment we have seen on this trip and fulfil all the necessary requirements."

According to Vice-President Warner's proposal, the stadiums in Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode and Kano will be given the opportunity to achieve readiness by the end of the "grace period" and host the competition together with Abuja's National Stadium and Lagos' Teslim Balogun Stadium.

"When the ‘grace period' expires, FIFA will return to visit the venues and if each and every one of them does not reach the 100% readiness level that we expect, then FIFA will withdraw the tournament hosting rights from Nigeria and go to another country," Warner announced at the press conference and referred to the upcoming FIFA Executive Committee meeting where the issue will be further discussed.

With regards to the stadiums in Bauchi and Kaduna, Warner expressed FIFA's gratitude: "We thank them for their efforts and have no doubt that once they do finally complete their venues, it will provide a wonderful legacy for the sporting infrastructure of their communities. However, everyone has always known that not all nine would be selected."

The venue of Warri could not be inspected over the past days due to security concerns in the vicinity of the city and the Delta State region in general. With the cooperation of international and Nigerian security agencies, FIFA will continue to closely monitor the situation in the nearby environs of Warri and decide if it can still be considered a candidate venue. Should the Executive Committee approve the "grace period" proposal and the situation makes it possible for FIFA to once again visit Warri when it returns in July, it will do so to evaluate the facilities and possibly utilise Warri as a seventh venue - assuming that all the other six have made the grade following the "grace period".

R-L, Jack Warner, Vice President, FIFA, Ach. Abdulahi Abubakar, LOC Consultant on facilities and John Schumacher, FIFA Competition during the inpection of Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos. 20-02-2008.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2024/2279816316_ab017c186a_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2285/2279816318_84b4ec26eb_o.jpg

I'm not sure but I think this is the offical website for the 2009 - U17 World Cup: nigeria-2009.com/ (http://www.nigeria-2009.com/)

However minor this seems compared to the WC,I'm sure some will see this as a litmus test for Africa's readiness to host the 2010 event.Eish,I'm crossing fingers.

FIFA inspection team for Warri


Inspectors from the world football governing body, FIFA, have finally agreed to visit Warri, the economic nerve centre of Delta State and one of the proposed venues for the association’s U-17 World Cup finals later in the year.

Sources said in Abuja on Tuesday that after listening to what they considered a “brilliant presentation” by chieftains of the Warri Sub-seat in Abuja on Monday evening, the association’s vice-president, Jack Warner, told his team that they should endeavour to go to Warri and see if what was being presented tallied with what is actually on ground.

The Warri Township Stadium has hosted many international games, including key matches of the 2002 and 2006 African Women Championships and the African Cup of Nations qualifier between Nigeria’s Super Eagles and the Crocodiles of Lesotho.

However, fears expressed by members of the association’s own Venue Security Assessment Team, led to the FIFA inspectors’ cancellation of the visit on Monday. They have now agreed to go and that could be on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the inspectors were in Kano, one of the nine cities bidding to get on the list of six, on Tuesday. Warner will on Thursday in Lagos announce the choice of venues that will eventually stage the three-week, 24-nation finals, that will take place in October/November this year.

234next.com (http://www.234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Sport/Football/5419080-147/FIFA_inspection_team_for_Warri_.csp)

Do you guys think the niger delta crisis will affect the U-17 World Cup or that it will be all over by the time the games begin?

Yellow card for Nigeria

After concluding an inspection visit of the facilities for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009, FIFA has noted a significant delay in the preparations for the tournament, scheduled to take place between 24 October and 15 November 2009. According to FIFA Vice-President and Chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, Jack A. Warner, who led the FIFA delegation, out of nine candidates, only two stadiums are close to being ready.

"Frankly, from an objective point of view, Nigeria is not ready to host the tournament," Chairman Warner said at a press conference today in Lagos. "But I am a man who has always believed in Nigeria and there have been some signs of hope and commitment. Based on those signs of hope I will propose to the FIFA Executive Committee when they meet on 30-31 May in Nassau that we give Nigeria a one month ‘grace period' for six venues to build on the signs of hope and commitment we have seen on this trip and fulfil all the necessary requirements."

According to Vice-President Warner's proposal, the stadiums in Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode and Kano will be given the opportunity to achieve readiness by the end of the "grace period" and host the competition together with Abuja's National Stadium and Lagos' Teslim Balogun Stadium.

"When the ‘grace period' expires, FIFA will return to visit the venues and if each and every one of them does not reach the 100% readiness level that we expect, then FIFA will withdraw the tournament hosting rights from Nigeria and go to another country," Warner announced at the press conference and referred to the upcoming FIFA Executive Committee meeting where the issue will be further discussed.

With regards to the stadiums in Bauchi and Kaduna, Warner expressed FIFA's gratitude: "We thank them for their efforts and have no doubt that once they do finally complete their venues, it will provide a wonderful legacy for the sporting infrastructure of their communities. However, everyone has always known that not all nine would be selected."

The venue of Warri could not be inspected over the past days due to security concerns in the vicinity of the city and the Delta State region in general. With the cooperation of international and Nigerian security agencies, FIFA will continue to closely monitor the situation in the nearby environs of Warri and decide if it can still be considered a candidate venue. Should the Executive Committee approve the "grace period" proposal and the situation makes it possible for FIFA to once again visit Warri when it returns in July, it will do so to evaluate the facilities and possibly utilise Warri as a seventh venue - assuming that all the other six have made the grade following the "grace period".

fifa.com (http://www.fifa.com/u17worldcup/organisation/media/newsid=1060906.html#yellow+card+nigeria)

http://www.234next.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.common.streams.StreamServer.cls?CONTENTTYPE=image/jpeg&STREAMOID=BtBgnOuiDToj6KDl8qC2hC6SYeqqxXXqBcOgKOfTXxTB9Zxz7OniedXw5mivNC2PwLkdkNm4NaK1iliY4aRX7GEabxkeoo57KN3LcI4Be79xyJSXHeyn6i9C8rc3E0xoX_kuXYWCUJRqviwH8FNPwULIcdFM9zupuYHBJc2ySZk-

Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, One of the stadia under construction in preparation for the U-17 World cup.

http://www.234next.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.common.streams.StreamServer.cls?CONTENTTYPE=image/jpeg&STREAMOID=BtBgnOuiDToj6KDl8qC2hC6SYeqqxXXqBcOgKOfTXxTB9Zxz7OniedXw5mivNC2PwLkdkNm4NaK1iliY4aRX7GEabxkeoo57KN3LcI4Be79xyJSXHeyn6i9C8rc3E0xoX_kuXYWCUJRqviwH8FNPwULIcdFM9zupuYHBJc2ySZk-

Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, One of the stadia under construction in preparation for the U-17 World cup.

Is this a brand new stadium or a renovated one?

thats a renovated stadium

Nigeria need to take a page out of south africa's ways of organising...this what has always killed nigeria...like it did in 1995 when they failed to host the 95 u-20 world cup..then got it back in 1999...poor organisation....its a shame....and Nigeria says it wants to host the senior fifa world cup...when they cant even organize an u-17 world cup

http://www.234next.com/csp/cms/sites/dt.common.streams.StreamServer.cls?CONTENTTYPE=image/jpeg&STREAMOID=BtBgnOuiDToj6KDl8qC2hC6SYeqqxXXqBcOgKOfTXxTB9Zxz7OniedXw5mivNC2PwLkdkNm4NaK1iliY4aRX7GEabxkeoo57KN3LcI4Be79xyJSXHeyn6i9C8rc3E0xoX_kuXYWCUJRqviwH8FNPwULIcdFM9zupuYHBJc2ySZk-

Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, One of the stadia under construction in preparation for the U-17 World cup.

Very small stadium for a city like Lagos. what in hell?:ohno:

teslim balogun lagos

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/ad/fullj.1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4/1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4-getty-fbl-fifa-u-17-world-cup-ngr.jpg

teslim balogun lagos

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/ad/fullj.1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4/1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4-getty-fbl-fifa-u-17-world-cup-ngr.jpg

Now that's become a nice little stadium.:)

thats a renovated stadium

Teslim Balogun stadium is a relatively new stadium......think it was officially open in 2007 or 08 and it is one of the two that have reached more than 90% completion

Very small stadium for a city like Lagos. what in hell?:ohno:

Teslim Balogun Stadium holds about 25,000 people which is pretty small for a city like lagos. But their is another stadium across the street, Lagos National Stadium aka Surelere Stadium, which holds about 60,000 or so. Surelere Stadium closed down in 2004 when the New national stadium in abuja was completed....Hopefully some Rich tycoon can buy and referbish Surelere Stadium so it can be used for sporting events again...

The Surulere stadium has real potential if renovated.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/furniture/sport/football/africa/cup_of_nations/venues/lagos_photo.gif

They should have carry out the renovation with the surulere stadium -for its large capacity. It going to be unbeleivebly too small for Lagos spectators on the match days.

or both! even if it's just for aerial aesthetic reasons...

i dont know why fifa or who ever is doing the renovations didnt just renovate the largest stadiums in the country.

teslim balogun lagos

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/ad/fullj.1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4/1171aa4fc23ef7cc54e830cb2d1459f4-getty-fbl-fifa-u-17-world-cup-ngr.jpg

are the renovations done

I don't know why we have to renovate every time we need to host something

I don't know why we have to renovate every time we need to host something

Every country does that.
But majority of african stadiums are not always caken care of like it was supposed to.



Anyways. Lagos needs a stadium with at least 90,000 seats.

I don't know why we have to renovate every time we need to host somethingTo meet with standard. Not only that, things change everytime.

Teslim Balogun Stadium, during the recent Lagos Principals Cup final.

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L04.jpg

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L09M.jpg

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L05.jpg

Will the country be able to meet the FIFA completion date?

Teslim Balogun is an old stadium, they actually started building it in the 80's, but then the military governments ignored it and it lay stale for nearly 24 years. homeless people and ishh lived their. but in 07 they finished it FINALLY

looks in good shapee

Teslim Balogun Stadium, during the recent Lagos Principals Cup final.

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L04.jpg

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L09M.jpg

http://www.tundefashola.org/archives/photos/2009/05/23/20090523L05.jpg

who is playing who.....

Eko boys!!

What are now the states of the stadia meant for the world cup?

Yellow card for Nigeria(FIFA.com)

After concluding an inspection visit of the facilities for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009, FIFA has noted a significant delay in the preparations for the tournament, scheduled to take place between 24 October and 15 November 2009. According to FIFA Vice-President and Chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, Jack A. Warner, who led the FIFA delegation, out of nine candidates, only two stadiums are close to being ready.

"Frankly, from an objective point of view, Nigeria is not ready to host the tournament," Chairman Warner said at a press conference today in Lagos. "But I am a man who has always believed in Nigeria and there have been some signs of hope and commitment. Based on those signs of hope I will propose to the FIFA Executive Committee when they meet on 30-31 May in Nassau that we give Nigeria a one month ‘grace period' for six venues to build on the signs of hope and commitment we have seen on this trip and fulfil all the necessary requirements."

According to Vice-President Warner's proposal, the stadiums in Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode and Kano will be given the opportunity to achieve readiness by the end of the "grace period" and host the competition together with Abuja's National Stadium and Lagos' Teslim Balogun Stadium.

"When the ‘grace period' expires, FIFA will return to visit the venues and if each and every one of them does not reach the 100% readiness level that we expect, then FIFA will withdraw the tournament hosting rights from Nigeria and go to another country," Warner announced at the press conference and referred to the upcoming FIFA Executive Committee meeting where the issue will be further discussed.

With regards to the stadiums in Bauchi and Kaduna, Warner expressed FIFA's gratitude: "We thank them for their efforts and have no doubt that once they do finally complete their venues, it will provide a wonderful legacy for the sporting infrastructure of their communities. However, everyone has always known that not all nine would be selected."

The venue of Warri could not be inspected over the past days due to security concerns in the vicinity of the city and the Delta State region in general. With the cooperation of international and Nigerian security agencies, FIFA will continue to closely monitor the situation in the nearby environs of Warri and decide if it can still be considered a candidate venue. Should the Executive Committee approve the "grace period" proposal and the situation makes it possible for FIFA to once again visit Warri when it returns in July, it will do so to evaluate the facilities and possibly utilise Warri as a seventh venue - assuming that all the other six have made the grade following the "grace period".

LINK (http://www.fifa.com/u17worldcup/organisation/media/newsid=1060906.html#yellow+card+nigeria)

Nigeria: U-17 World Cup - FG Gets June 11 FIFA Ultimatum
World football governing body, FIFA, has set Nigeria a deadline of 11 June to commit to hosting the Under-17 World Cup or face forfeiting the tournament.

Nigeria is expected to host the 24-team event from October 24 to November 15.

But the world body is unhappy that several cities have yet to prove their suitability to stage matches.

Last week, FIFA Vice President Jack Warner went to Nigeria to evaluate their preparations and was distinctly unimpressed by what he saw.

Warner said just two of nine prospective venues were close to being ready and said he would recommend a one-month grace period for venues to show signs of improvement.

But FIFA's Executive Committee, meeting in the Bahamas capital, Nassau, has now warned that unless there are "binding government guarantees", the tournament will be moved somewhere else.

A high-ranking FIFA delegation will travel to Lagos to get the required guarantees from Nigeria's Vice-President, Dr Jonathan Goodluck.

Aside from Warner, chairman of the Organising Committee for the U-17 World Cup, the delegation will also include Issa Hayatou, president of the Confederation of African Football.

FIFA Executive Committee member Dr Amos Adamu and FIFA Secretary General Jerome Valcke will also meet with Dr Goodluck on 11 June to request binding government guarantees that Nigeria will fulfil all requirements for hosting the championship.

"If these guarantees are given, the six venues will be Abuja, Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode, Kano and Lagos," a FIFA press statement said yesterday.

Should the guarantees not be issued, the tournament would be withdrawn from Nigeria and an alternative host nation found.

In another development, the FIFA Executive Committee rubber-stamped the lifting of the suspension on the Ethiopian Football Federation.

It said it had done so "on condition that the electoral committee that had since been installed would organise and chair an elective general assembly by the end of July 2009."

LINK (http://allafrica.com/stories/200906030291.html)


Does that mean Nigeria may not host the game?

The surprising thing to me is that Nigeria bidded for the hosting right of FIFA 2010 world cup yet find it difficult to fix things up for U17.

The surprising thing to me is that Nigeria bidded for the hosting right of FIFA 2010 world cup yet find it difficult to fix things up for U17.
Nigeria did not bid for the WC 2010.

A few opportunists set up a so-called exploration committee (led by a famous ex-footballer) that pitched a co-hosting arrangement with several other ECOWAS countries, and toured around trying to float that kite but it never got off the ground. However, Nigeria did bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games at Abuja, and I believe (based on the bid documents and the level of official support) that Nigeria would have pulled that off.

Thank you for the correction, JoblessB...

Nigeria U-17 given Fifa approval

A delegation of Fifa officials has expressed satisfaction with the Nigerian government's commitment, after visiting the country ahead of the Under-17 World Cup, scheduled for October.

Football's world governing body said it is encouraged by the written assurance given by the federal government that facilities for the 2009 tournament will be ready by the end of July.

Back in May, Fifa vice-president Jack Warner had warned Nigeria that it risked losing out on hosting the event after several cities failed to prove their suitability to stage matches.

But after a closed door meeting in the capital Abuja, Warner and his team got the required guarantees from Nigeria's vice president Dr Jonathan Goodluck.

"We are happy that the Nigerian government has given us the written assurance and guarantee we asked for," Jack Warner told a handful of journalist at the presidential villa in Abuja on Saturday.

"Based on what I have seen and heard, so much has been done across the states designated to host.

"We thank the Nigerian government for their support and both [host cities] Warri and Kaduna for the improvement since our last visit."

Warner has, however, moved the final inspection of venues and facilities for the tournament forward.

"The final inspection exercise will now take place on 26 and 27 July," Warner added.

"Hopefully this will coincide with the draws for the tournament proper. So we now look forward to positive things ahead."

Nigeria, despite being the reigning champions, only qualified for the event by virtue of being the hosts.

The build-up to the tournament has been beset with delays and difficulties.

Nigeria formally withdrew from holding the tournament at one stage after the government said hosting the event was not a priority.

They were persuaded to go back on the decision after the intervention of Fifa and the Confederation of African Football (Caf).

news.bbc.co.uk (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/africa/8099612.stm)

Good to hear about the confidence from the govt.

Warri Is Ready For FIFA U-17 World Cup


The Delta State governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan has disclosed that the Warri City Stadium is now 100 percent ready for the hosting of the FIFA under-17 world cup tagged Nigeria 2009.

The state governor stated this penultimate weekend on Friday while inspecting facilities at the Warri City Stadium ahead of next month’s FIFA delegation final inspection.

According to an elated Governor Uduaghan who after inspecting facilities at the stadium said that the Warri sub-seat in unique in that it has experienced man-power to organize a successful event haven played host to the African Women Championship on two occasions and the recently concluded WAFU under 20 tournament.

He said apart from the Abuja National Stadium, the Warri City Stadium is the only stadium in the country that is all covered with excellent facilities.

Governor Uduaghan said Deltans should be proud of the Warri City Stadium and added that the Delta State government is prepared to host the world youth tournament charging the people of the state to give adequate support.

Governor Uduaghan said he is excited that most people want Delta State to be part of the hosting of the event with the amount of calls he received after the Warri City Stadium was selected by the FIFA delegation after their last visit.

Directing the Local Organising Committee of the Warri sub-seat to complete all uncompleted jobs at the stadium, Governor Uduaghan said Delta State can single-handedly host the world under-17 tournament on behalf of the country as it has done in the past.

Places inspected include the dressing rooms, newly installed artificial turf, media center, press gallery training pitch, commentary box, newly built police post, car park, plant house VIP lounges, score board and the dualisation of the Bowen Avenue road.

Governor Uduaghan was conducted round the stadium by the chairman of the Delta State Sports Commission, Mr. Amaju Pinnick who briefed him on the various challenges facing the Warri sub-seat.


LINK (http://leadershipnigeria.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2874:warri-is-ready-for-fifa-u-17-world-cup--uduaghan&catid=19:sports-news&Itemid=78)

The security in Niger-delta can't be ignored!

Teslim Balogun

http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/05Hu0eug7ugTI/610x.jpg

There's still much to be done on the stadia!

like what?

Beside Teslim Balogun, Like the pitches, Lighting, scoreboards,Maintening surrounding fields(The one in Teslim B. Stadium needs one),advert boards,etc. It's just less than four months away to the commencement of the game now.

(FIFA.com) Thursday 6 August 2009
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Following a final venue inspection tour, FIFA has today confirmed the cities which will host the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009. The cities are as follows: Abuja, Bauchi, Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode, Kaduna, Kano and Lagos. Warri has been excluded from use during the competition.

"I was pleased to see that the venues have made significant progress since my last visit in May. They now meet the basic stadium infrastructure requirements of FIFA and thus can be confirmed for the competition," said Jack A. Warner, FIFA Vice-President and Chairman of the FIFA Organising Committee for the U-17 World Cup. "What impressed me even more than the infrastructural improvements was the passion and the commitment the people of Nigeria have shown. I congratulate the Federal Government and the State authorities, the Local Organising Committee as well as the communities in the cities for what they have achieved. The legacy which was created will last far beyond the upcoming tournament. I am therefore proud to say that Nigeria is ready to host the FIFA U-17 World Cup."
I was pleased to see that the venues have made significant progress since my last visit in May. They now meet the basic stadium infrastructure requirements of FIFA and thus can be confirmed for the competition.
FIFA Vice-President Jack A. Warner

A few of the venues need some additional work which FIFA has approved and has agreed to monitor over the next few days.

With regards to Warri, FIFA Vice-President Warner added: "Despite special efforts by FIFA to provide additional time, advice and opportunities to raise the quality of the facilities to a level that would meet the requirements of hosting matches of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the delivery had fallen far below the necessary level. FIFA cannot approve a venue in which one of the most critical elements, the main pitch in the stadium, is in an extremely poor state at the time of the final inspection."

The match schedule for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009 will be presented at the Official Draw, scheduled to take place tomorrow, Friday, 7 August at 20.00h in the International Conference Centre Abuja. The opening match will be played on 24 October, the final on 15 November.

Can we get the venues list?

damn nigeria handed a tough group...playing germany and argentina...group of death

argentina! oh no well it at least we got to host the competetion

Can we get the venues list?

check out http://www.nigeria-2009.com/

They got a website! Nice to know there is one.Good!

whats up with you and websites???

(FIFA.com) Thursday 6 August 2009
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Following a final venue inspection tour, FIFA has today confirmed the cities which will host the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009. The cities are as follows: Abuja, Bauchi, Calabar, Enugu, Ijebu-Ode, Kaduna, Kano and Lagos. Warri has been excluded from use during the competition.

"I was pleased to see that the venues have made significant progress since my last visit in May. They now meet the basic stadium infrastructure requirements of FIFA and thus can be confirmed for the competition," said Jack A. Warner, FIFA Vice-President and Chairman of the FIFA Organising Committee for the U-17 World Cup. "What impressed me even more than the infrastructural improvements was the passion and the commitment the people of Nigeria have shown. I congratulate the Federal Government and the State authorities, the Local Organising Committee as well as the communities in the cities for what they have achieved. The legacy which was created will last far beyond the upcoming tournament. I am therefore proud to say that Nigeria is ready to host the FIFA U-17 World Cup."
I was pleased to see that the venues have made significant progress since my last visit in May. They now meet the basic stadium infrastructure requirements of FIFA and thus can be confirmed for the competition.
FIFA Vice-President Jack A. Warner

A few of the venues need some additional work which FIFA has approved and has agreed to monitor over the next few days.

With regards to Warri, FIFA Vice-President Warner added: "Despite special efforts by FIFA to provide additional time, advice and opportunities to raise the quality of the facilities to a level that would meet the requirements of hosting matches of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the delivery had fallen far below the necessary level. FIFA cannot approve a venue in which one of the most critical elements, the main pitch in the stadium, is in an extremely poor state at the time of the final inspection."

The match schedule for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009 will be presented at the Official Draw, scheduled to take place tomorrow, Friday, 7 August at 20.00h in the International Conference Centre Abuja. The opening match will be played on 24 October, the final on 15 November.

I can't wait to see our first match on Sunday!

Match results

Argentina 1 0 Honduras
Nigeria 3 3 Germany

Mexico 0 2 Switzerland
Brazil 3 3 Japan

http://www.nigeria-2009.com/

nigeria vs switzerland for the final

^^ I'm glad you guys beat the crap out of Spain. Well done to the eaglets, I watched the whole game yesterday.

WHEN IS THE FINALS?

Eko For Show::Sky shows as Lagos bids U-17 tourney bye



By Tony Ubani
Lagos State, arguably the best sub-seat for the FIFA U-17 World Cup on-going in Nigeria would wind up their excellent hosting of matches at the Teslim Balogun Stadium where the two semi- finals would be played tomorrow in grand style.
Switzerland opens up the first game against Colombia at 4pm while Nigeria would bring down the roof by 7pm when they tackle Spain. And in its characteristic manner, Lagos State would show off their might when they light up even the skies with special messages that will entertain. As early as 9am, the jets would lighten the skies with their aerial manoeuvres and displaying messages.

Information from the Lagos sub-seat has it that the aircraft would continue their aerial ‘bombardment’ until afternoon when the crowd would have packed themselves for the first match of the day. That is not all. There would also be spectacular fireworks that would start from where the jets stopped.

“The might of Lagos sub- seat will be felt tomorrow because it is our own way of saying a big thank you to all the fans and Lagosians who have been most wonderful with their support for activities in Lagos State”, Sub-seat Chairman and Vice President of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Amanze Uchegbulam, confirmed.

Also, musicians like Seun Kuti, Adewale Ayuba, Ayan Birin would be on ground to entertain fans within intervals for the carnival-like show that marks the end of activities of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Lagos State.

“We are putting up an innovation that we have tagged ‘Soccertainment’ for Lagosians. It is our own way of thanking everybody and to show indeed that Lagos Own The Game. Lagosians have been tremendous in the matches in Lagos. Without being boastful, Lagos has been the centre of excellence for the U-17 World Cup”, Jaiye Opayemi, Executive Director of Wisdom Keys said as they put finishing touches to the closing shows they hope will excite fans.