Sports

WHAT’S WITH AFCON 2021? Confusion as Referee Sikazwe ends Mali vs Tunisia three times

Published

4 years ago

January 12, 2022

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Confusion and drama mixed at the ongoing 2021 Africa Cup of Nations on Wednesday, as referee Janny Sikazwe ended the Mali vs Tunisia match twice before full time.

Mali won the game 1-0, after Ibrahima Kone netted a penalty in the second half.

Tunisia also missed a spot kick of their own in the Group F game.

Surprisingly, Sikazwe, who officiated at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, initially blew for the final whistle on 85 minutes as he got his timekeeping all wrong.

But after playing on, he repeated the error when he blew for full-time once more before the clock had ticked over to the 90 minutes.

Tunisia were furious and officials stormed on to the pitch in protest, but the man of the match trophy was handed out and the postmatch news conferences in full swing before Confederation of African Football (CAF) officials decided the remaining minutes should be played.

Mali came out onto the pitch again 40 minutes after the controversy began, but Tunisia refused to play on and Sikazwe ended the game for a third time.

“The players were taking ice baths for 35 minutes before they were called back out again,” Tunisia coach Mondher Kebaier told reporters.

“I’ve been coaching for a long time never seen anything like it. Even the fourth official was preparing to lift the board [to show how many minutes of injury-time] and then the whistle was blown.”

The match was also a tale of two penalties as Mali forward Ibrahima Kone converted his attempt after a handball, but Tunisia’s Wahbi Khazri could not follow suit as his effort was saved by goalkeeper Ibrahim Mounkoro 13 minutes from time.

After a dull first-half, Mali made a bright start to the second and after only a minute were awarded a penalty when Boubacar Kiki Kouyate’s shot struck the hand of Ellyes Skhiri as the Tunisia midfielder turned his back on the ball.

Kone stepped up to convert the penalty and give the his side the lead.

Tunisia earned a penalty after 77 minutes as Moussa Djenepo handled the ball and after consulting VAR, Sikazwe awarded the spot-kick.

But Khazri’s fierce shot was beaten away by Mounkoro with an excellent save.

Mali finished the game with 10 players after a harsh red card for El Bilal Toure when he challenged for the ball with Dylan Bronn and was fractionally late.

Sports

WrestleMania 42: Nigerian wrestler Oba Femi beats 10-time WWE Champion Brock Lesnar

Published

5 days ago

April 20, 2026

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Nigerian professional wrestler, Isaac Odugbesan, popularly known as Oba Femi, defeated 10-time WWE Champion, Brock Lesnar, on his WrestleMania debut on Sunday.

The clash, one of the headline matches at WrestleMania 42, ended on a dramatic note as the 27-year-old Nigerian overpowered the veteran.

Lesnar left his wrestling gear in the ring after the match — a gesture widely regarded in professional wrestling as a sign of retirement.

Oba Femi, also known as “The Ruler,” is a former NXT champion and has spent just three months on WWE’s main roster.

The contest began with both wrestlers testing each other’s strength before Lesnar briefly seized control with a series of offensive moves.

However, Femi absorbed the pressure and responded with a dominant display, shifting momentum in his favour.

Lesnar delivered an F5, but Femi quickly recovered, hitting a chokeslam before finishing the contest with his “Fall From Grace” sit-out powerbomb for the pinfall victory.

The bout quickly became a major talking point on social media, with fans reacting to the upset win.

Femi, a former shot put athlete, is a two-time NXT Champion and a one-time NXT North American Champion.

Born in Lagos, Odugbesan competed in track and field during his school years before signing with WWE in 2021 through its NIL programme.

He went on to win the 2023 NXT Men’s Breakout Tournament and the 2024 Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge.

During the WrestleMania Sunday post-show, Femi sent a message to Roman Reigns, popularly known as the “Original Tribal Chief,” drawing a loud reaction from fans as he hinted at a possible title challenge before the end of the year.

Sports

BREAKING: CAF overturns Afcon final result, declares Morocco winner

Published

1 month ago

March 17, 2026

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The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has overturned the result of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals and declare MOROCCO the winner of the title.

Senegal beat Morocco 1-0 in the final on 18 January in a match which was overshadowed when the Senegalese players refused to play after the hosts were awarded a stoppage-time penalty with the match goalless.

Following a delay of around 17 minutes, the players did eventually return and Brahim Diaz’s penalty was saved before Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored an extra-time winner.

However, that result has now been overturned by CAF.

A statement by the African Football’s Governing Body said that Senegal are “declared to have forfeited the final match” with the “result of the match being recorded as 3-0 in favour” of Morocco.

Sports

FG fulfils promises as D’Tigress receive national honours, house documents

Published

1 month ago

March 17, 2026

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The Federal Government has fulfilled its outstanding promises to the senior women’s national basketball team, D’Tigress, delivering National Honour certificates and title documents for houses in Abuja.

The presentation took place in Lyon, where the African Champions are currently participating at the FIBA Women’s World Cup Qualifying Tournament.

The move follows a directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu aimed at clearing a backlog of promises made to the team following their 2023 Afrobasket victory in Kigali, Rwanda.

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko, led the delegation alongside the Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade. Speaking during the handover, Dikko characterized the prompt delivery as a “clear departure” from previous administrations, where state-promised rewards often faced multi-year delays.

“This is a prompt fulfilment of promises made by a President who leads with action,” Dikko stated. “Mr. President is giving every Nigerian athlete a renewed confidence that sports is a serious business capable of changing lives.”

While the physical assets (housing and honours) have been delivered, the NSC Chairman confirmed that the cash rewards promised to the squad are currently in the final stages of administrative processing. He assured the players that disbursement into their respective bank accounts is imminent.

The Director General, Hon. Bukola Olopade, noted that the current administration of President Tinubu is institutionalizing a “reward system” modelled after developed sporting nations to ensure high-performance outcomes.

President of Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Engr. Musa Kida, credited the Presidency for prioritizing athlete welfare, citing it as a “legacy of a lifetime” for the sports sector.

Head Coach Rena Wakama and Captain Amy Okonkwo formally accepted the documents, affirming that the timely delivery of these incentives would serve as a catalyst for the team’s upcoming international qualifiers.