TheCable

The Nigeria Football Federation bear no grudge against FIFA or the 2014 World Cup Local Organising Committee for misrepresenting the Nigerian flag at Thursday’s opening ceremony.

Instead of Nigeria’s flag, an image of Niger’s flag was projected to the globe at the middle of the pitch during the ceremony. But Musa Amadu, the secretary-general of the NFF, believes that the error was unintentional.

“If they called Nigeria and they raised Niger’s flag, it’s not a matter I can address from here,” he told NAN.

“People that were there saw it and I know they will talk to FIFA about it. LOC and FIFA made an honest mistake. I know they (FIFA and the 2014 World Cup LOC) will apologise for their mistakes and that should be the end of the matter.

“Like I said, FIFA and the LOC for the World Cup made an honest mistake and I know they will correct it. Nobody is above human mistake, unless there is any in Nigeria.’

Nigeria’s flag features three vertical stripes, with a white stripe sandwiched between two green stripes, while Niger’s flag features three horizontal stripes. The top stripe is orange, sitting above a white stripe and a green stripe. There is an orange circle in the middle of the white stripe.

The neighbouring African nations share a 450-mile border and maintain friendly relations. Nigeria is currently ranked No. 44 in FIFA rankings, while Niger is ranked No. 112 and did not qualify for the World Cup.