Following weeks of silence, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has finally confirmed that they have sanctioned the Kashif & Shanghai Year-end Futsal Championship, noting that approval was granted following a FIFA compliance process.
According to the correspondence, the promotional entity, which is headed by Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC) Kashif Muhammad, successfully completed its application for the staging of the tournament, which now also fully adheres to the regulations and statutes of FIFA and CONCACAF, paving the way for registered players and officials to participate.
The release did not state if other Futsal tournaments this year had to undergo a similar process.
According to the release, “Recent press reports have caused confusion among members and stakeholders, prompting FIFA’s intervention to clarify the compliance obligations for third-party organisers of football events, programs, and competitions. On November 15, 2024, FIFA’s Chief Member Associations Officer, Elkhan Mammadov, wrote to the GFF to emphasise the federation’s role in regulating football in Guyana.”
The aforementioned confusion stemmed from Muhammad, who, when asked if permission was sought from the GFF to stage the event during the official launch on November 6th, had said, “No, we didn’t ask for permission because the reason being these teams are not affiliated to the GFF, so we can’t ask the GFF for their permission, and none of them are affiliated to the GFF.”
However, according to the GFF correspondence, Mammadov said, “In this respect, we would first like to state that, in view of article 11, paragraph 1 of the FIFA Statutes, the GFF is responsible for organising and supervising football in all of its forms in its country.”
He noted that based on article 64, paragraph 1, of the FIFA Statutes, “Players and teams affiliated to member associations […] may not play matches or make sporting contacts with players or teams that are not affiliated to member associations […].” According to Mammadov, article 2, paragraph 1a of the GFF Statutes states among the objectives of the GFF the administration of “competitions in association football, futsal, and beach soccer at national level by defining precisely, as required, the areas of authority conceded to the various leagues of which it is composed.”
He further said that members of the GFF shall not “maintain any relation of a sporting nature with entities (e.g., clubs, leagues) that are not members or affiliates [of the GFF]” (cf. art. 15 par. 1 i) of the GFF Statutes). In view of all of the above, we therefore consider that the GFF is the entity recognised by FIFA in charge of regulating, organising, and controlling all forms of football within its jurisdiction, that is, the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.”
