Friday, September 25, 2026 - Nigerian referee Abiola Kasimu Abdulsalam has been chosen to officiate at this year’s FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar.
His selection ends a 25-year wait for Nigeria to have a
centre referee at the youth tournament.
The 34-year-old from Zamfara State is the only Nigerian
centre referee on the list and one of just four referees chosen from Africa.
According to a post on FIFA’s website, the global football
body selected 81 match officials from 36 countries, including 27 main referees
and 54 assistant referees.
Abdulsalam, who became a FIFA-badged referee in 2022, brings
strong experience to the tournament.
He has officiated at two CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations
competitions, several WAFU tournaments, and was the sole Nigerian referee
picked for the 2025 African Nations Championship.
He is also set to referee an upcoming 2027 Africa Cup of
Nations qualifier between Cameroon and Comoros.
The chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee, Pierluigi
Collina, praised the selected officials as some of the most promising in the
world.
He noted that they were picked based on their performances,
teamwork, and ability to handle the pressure of a major international
tournament.
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