The Confederation of African Football (CAF) governing body has unveiled Samson Adamu, of Nigeria, as its new permanent general secretary.
Adamu has been acting in that capacity since March, following the resignation of the previous general secretary, Veron Mosengo-Omba.
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African soccer's governing body unveiled the news yesterday, with its president, Patrice Motsepe, saying that Adamu's permanent appointment came through a comprehensive recruitment process, and following the interviewing of several candidates.
Adamu has been at CAF since March of 2018, initially serving as director of competitions before then moving into the position of director of tournaments and events.
CAF has said he "brings considerable institutional knowledge and experience to this new role, in which he will oversee CAF's day-to-day administration and support the implementation of its strategic priorities."
Adamu's father, Amos, was a member of the FIFA executive committee for four years, before being banned in 2010 for breaking the global soccer body's anti-bribery rules.
Amos Adamu also spent time as president of the West Africa Football Union.
Late last week, it was unveiled that CAF had reneged on its decision to switch its high-profile Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament to a quadrennial schedule. The tournament will instead stick to a biennial schedule – as has been in place since 1968.
CAF's executive committee “unanimously decided” to revert to the two-year cycle format, as the alternative, a ‘nations league’ competition, would take too long to make up the shortfall in revenue from the halving of AFCON commitment.
The last few weeks and months have also seen CAF looking to sell media rights to the next AFCON, scheduled to take place across Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, next June and July.
Late October saw a pair of agencies – Media Experts Limited (MEL) and Media Business Solutions (MBS) – snap up a package of exclusive free-to-air rights for the 2027 AFCON.
Through this latest deal, the agency pair will seek to identify FTA partners for the competition in all sub-Saharan markets, including in the three host nations.
Mosengo-Omba, meanwhile, resigned amid the fallout from the controversial 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final.
He also avoided legal action in Switzerland in 2025 over alleged suspicious financial activities, after the Swiss Public Prosecutors' Office declined to open proceedings against him.
