A former Youth and Sports Minister, Edwin Nii Lante Vanderpuye has backed former Ghana international, Anthony Baffoe to become the first black FIFA president.
Having worked as the Deputy General Secretary for the Confederations of African Football [CAF], Baffoe is well known to be one of the respected football administrators in the country and on the continent.
According to Vanderpuye, Baffoe is on the path of becoming the first black man to rule the world’s highest football body.
“I have told him he has the opportunity to become the first African to be FIFA president… The next president should be coming to Africa and I have told him he has a great chance”, Nii Lante said on GTV’s breakfast show.
Also, former Ghana Football Association (GFA) spokesperson, Ibrahim Saani Daara who was on the show talked about the reverence Baffoe has gained among the top ranks at CAF and FIFA.
“When Tony stepped into football circles at the highest level. In fact, when you are in a meeting with Tony and he is speaking, he has football knowledge.
“You see that the respect is there, whoever is sitting there, whether the CAF president or the FIFA president whoever it is”, Daara said.
Baffoe previously served on FIFA and CAF Football Committees and was also involved in organizing CAF and FIFA-sanctioned tournaments.
The Ghana legend is the founder and general secretary of the Professional Footballers Association (PFAG) of Ghana.
In that capacity is in close contact with the FIFPro Players’ association and works in collaboration with the GFA.
Baffoe is a FIFA Ambassador for the campaign against racism, a FIFA ambassador for SOS Children’s Village, and an ambassador for Play Soccer Ghana.
He was a member of the Black Stars team that lost the 1992 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON finals to Ivory Coast.
Source: Modern Ghana
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