The Nigeria Soccer Federation (NFF), by its Refereeing Improvement Committee, has handed down a collection of indefinite suspensions to referees and assistant referees throughout the NPFL, NNL and NWFL, following what it described as poor and inconsistent software of the Legal guidelines of the Sport.
In a round dated 13 December 2025 and addressed to affected officers by their respective State Soccer Associations, the Committee defined that the sanctions had been imposed to curb recurring officiating excesses, restore confidence in match officers and shield the integrity of Nigerian soccer.
Based on the Committee, an in depth overview of match footage and official stories from a number of league fixtures uncovered critical errors that instantly influenced match outcomes and introduced refereeing into disrepute.
The heaviest sanctions arose from the NPFL Matchday 9 fixture between Barau FC and Kano Pillars FC. Referee Anthony Eze (FCT), alongside his assistants Peter Ogwu (BA) and Aduba Ngbede (FCT), had been discovered responsible of a number of officiating lapses, together with the wrongful award of a penalty, failure to award a transparent penalty at one other stage of the match, and a number of other collaborative choices that affected the ultimate outcome.
All three officers have been positioned on indefinite suspension from all football-related actions.
Within the NNL Matchday 4 encounter between Rovers FC and Sporting Lagos FC, assistant referee Ekpouko Ubong (AK) was additionally indefinitely suspended after an incorrect offside name denied Sporting Lagos a transparent goal-scoring alternative.
The Committee additional sanctioned Ernest Cynthia (OG), assistant referee within the NWFL Matchday 2 match between Remo Stars Girls and Abia Angels, for wrongly flagging an offside and disallowing a reliable objective.
One other NNL Matchday 4 fixture, involving Mighty Jets FC and Metropolis FC, noticed referee Nurah Abdullahi (ZM) suspended indefinitely for failing to guard the goalkeeper from unlawful challenges, which finally led to a objective that altered the end result of the match.
Referee Ahmed M. Usman (NG) was equally punished after awarding what the Committee described as an arbitrary penalty within the NNL Matchday 5 recreation between Sporting Supreme FC and Bichi FC, regardless of clear proof that no foul had been dedicated.
Nonetheless, not all match officers had been discovered culpable.
Within the NNL Matchday 5 fixture between Lobi Stars FC and Basira FC, the Committee upheld the referee’s resolution to award a penalty for handball, noting that the defender’s arm motion met the factors for an offence.
The officers had been absolutely exonerated, as subsequent incidents couldn’t be conclusively judged resulting from inconclusive digital camera angles.
Referee Michael Adepoju (FCT), then again, was sanctioned following the NNL Matchday 5 conflict between Kada Warriors FC and Mighty Jets FC, after awarding a penalty primarily based on simulation by an attacking participant.
The Committee dominated that no offence occurred and imposed an indefinite suspension.
Equally, within the NWFL Matchday 3 match between Ekiti Queens and Edo Queens, the Committee dominated in favour of the officers, stating that the offside resolution underneath overview couldn’t be clearly decided resulting from poor digital camera protection, resulting in their exoneration.
The NFF Refereeing Improvement Committee, chaired by Mohammed Ameenu, reaffirmed that the decisive measures underscore the Federation’s zero-tolerance coverage on poor officiating and its dedication to elevating refereeing requirements throughout all home leagues.
