FIFA Threatens Nigeria and Ghana To Fulfill Ultimatums or Be Banned from Global Football

Nigeria and Ghana football associations face being banned by FIFA if they do not abide by issued ultimatums, BBC Sportreports.

Both countries are facing bans from global football for "undue influence" in the affairs of their governing bodies.

FIFA says Nigeria's ban could be immediate if the Nigeria Football Federation "offices are not handed back to the legitimate NFF executive committee under president Amaju Pinnick."

This comes after a recent court case acknowledged Chris Giwa as the NFF president. Giwa is currently serving a five-year ban by FIFA for breaching NFF statutes and the FIFA code of ethics, as well as for "impersonation and taking football matters to a civil court."

The NFF will be holding elections on September 20 as Pinnick's four-year term is ending soon.

FIFA ensures that any ban would not impact Nigeria's participation at the Women's Under-20 World Cup in France. The Super Falconets are set to play Spain in the quarter-finals on Thursday.

Ghana must withdraw a high court petition by the attorney general to have the football association "liquidated" by August 27 or be banned. BBC Sport adds the case came in lieu of widespread corruption allegations.

In a statement signed by FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura, Ghana's case "constituted an undue influence in the affairs of the GFA in contravention of FIFA statutes."

"If the petition to start the liquidation process of the GFA is not withdrawn by Monday 27 August 2018 at 11:00 GMT, the GFA will be suspended with immediate effect," Samoura says.

The petition brought to the court came after a film released by controversial Ghanaian journalist Anas Aremayaw Anas revealed African football match officials and former GFA president Kwesi Nyantakyi accepting cash gifts.

A global ban would put Ghana's 2019 African Cup of Nations qualifier against Kenya on September 8 in limbo, as Nigeria is set to travel to face Seychelles that same weekend.