Appointed CAF secretary general, Samson Adamu becomes the first Nigerian to hold the post. He places youth development and competition management at the heart of his mandate.
Samson Adamu is now secretary general of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). His appointment, confirmed by the body on 1 November after a recruitment process approved by its executive committee, makes him the first Nigerian to reach the position, according to africasport.net.
He was speaking on Tuesday during a visit to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, where he set out the focus areas of his mandate: youth development and improving competition management, according to africasport.net.
A career built for the job
Before being elevated to head the general secretariat, Samson Adamu rose through the ranks at CAF. He joined the organisation in 2018 as competitions director, before serving as director of tournaments and events. In March 2026, he was appointed interim secretary general, a step that preceded the confirmation of his post.
The general secretariat he now leads has thus been entrusted to an executive who has been established in the body since 2018.
Youth and competitions as priorities
Youth development and competition management are among the priorities Samson Adamu identified, according to africasport.net. He links these projects to the training of the game’s stakeholders.
“You cannot have good football without solid foundations and pathways for players, referees, coaches and everyone else,” he said, according to africasport.net.
Nigeria and Africa, the same fight
The new secretary general explicitly links the future of Nigerian football to that of the continent. “If African football grows, Nigerian football grows at the same time. And Nigerian football cannot grow alone; it must grow in competition with all the other African nations,” he said, again according to africasport.net.
Nigeria’s president, Bola Tinubu, reaffirmed the federal government’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s influence in African football administration, the same source reports.