Latest news with #MohammedYusuf
RNZ News
7 days ago
- Sport
- RNZ News
Fiji to compete in King's Cup in Thailand
Fiji FA CEO says the national men's team will play two matches against Iraq and Hong Kong on 4 September and 7 September. Photo: OFC via phototek / Shane Wenzlick The Fiji national men's football team has been invited to compete in the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) 2025 King's Cup tournament, the Fiji Football Association chief executive has confirmed. Speaking to RNZ Pacific, Mohammed Yusuf said four teams have been locked in for the 51st edition of the tournament: Fiji, Thailand, Iraq and Hong Kong. The event will be held during the FIFA International Match Window from 1 to 9 September. Yusuf said Fiji will play two matches against Iraq and Hong Kong on 4 September and 7 September. He said Fiji FA's focus now is on finding a head coach, after incumbent Rob Sherman departed by mutual agreement this week. Sherman coached Fiji during the OFC 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, where the side failed to finish in the top two. Rob Sherman stepped down as Fiji men's team head coach this week. Photo: Screenshot/Fiji FA. New Zealand won that Oceania spot, while runner-up New Caledonia still has a chance of qualifying through a play-off round. Yusuf said the King's Cup tournament will be a good test for the Fijians, as they kick off their campaign for the next round of FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Fiji is the lowest-ranked team among the four participating nations, sitting at 150th position out of 210 in the FIFA rankings. Iraq, which won the title two years ago, is ranked 58th in the world. Thailand is ranked 102nd, while Hong Kong is three places above Fiji at 147th. Thailand won the tournament in Songkhla last year, after defeating Syria 2-1 in the final.
RNZ News
05-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Fiji Football against election of leader with criminal conviction
The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland Photo: AFP The Fiji Football Association (FA) says it does not condone anyone with criminal convictions being part of their leadership set-up. Chief executive officer Mohammed Yusuf said in a media statement on Saturday that the controversial election of Aiyaz Mohammed Musa Umarji as vice-president west, during the Fiji FA Congress on 30 May in Suva, was not according to their laws. He said article 46(6) of the Fiji FA statutes prohibits individuals previously found guilty of a criminal offence from holding executive office. But according to the Football Association statement, Umarji is challenging this in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). He was sentenced in August 2023 to four years in prison but his jail time was reduced by six months after an appeal. He was released last October and deported home. He argues his guilty plea, conviction and three-year and six-month imprisonment in New Zealand - on three counts of importing Class B controlled drugs - cannot have an impact on his eligibility because the offence is not football related. The Fiji FA is opposing this "because there is no such a limitation in the FijiFA prohibition". Umarji was initially disqualified from candidacy by Fiji FA's governance committee under article 46(6), but the Court of Arbitration for Sport issued a provisional order permitting him to contest the election. The CAS president said the decision to grant the requested relief "does not amount to a legitimisation or trivialisation of the importance of maintaining the highest ethical and integrity standards". "The present decision should not be seen as an act of leniency towards any potentially criminal conduct that may be incompatible with [those] standards." The Fiji FA has decided that the new vice president will not be declared elected, has not assumed office and his eligibility remains under review by CAS. But it also acknowledges that a majority of members at the Congress voted for Umarji for the vice-president west position. "We respectfully urge the public and the media to await the final decision of the CAS Panel, which will comprehensively resolve the matter of eligibility." Aiyaz Umarji directed a request for comment to his lawyer, who has not responded to RNZ Pacific' s questions.
Voice of America
26-01-2025
- Science
- Voice of America
Kenyan tech firm turns plastic waste into 3D images; boosts learning, cuts emissions
Plastic waste accounts for 10 to 12 percent of all solid waste in Kenya, according to the United Nations Environmental Program. A Kenyan tech company is using plastic waste to print 3D models that help college students with their learning while reducing damage to the environment. Mohammed Yusuf reports from Nairobi.
