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Former Mancity striker set to become Georgia’s Far Right president
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Georgian ex-footballer turned far-right politician Mikheil Kavelashvili is set to become Tbilisi’s next figurehead president in an indirect election denounced as “illegitimate” by the current pro-EU leader
Picked by the governing Georgian Dream party as a loyalist, the former forward for the English Premier League’s Manchester City is known for his expletive-laden parliament speeches and tirades against government critics and LGBTQ people.
He is expected to be voted into the role by an electoral college controlled by Georgian Dream, after the party abolished the use of popular votes to elect the president under controversial constitutional changes passed in 2017.
Kavelashvili being catapulted to the role comes at a dramatic moment as thousands of anti-government protesters have flooded Tbilisi for weeks, furious at Georgian Dream for shelving EU accession talks.
Protesters have described Kavelashvili as a “puppet” of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgian Dream’s founder, who in turn has called him “the embodiment of a Georgian man”.
Sporting a moustache and combed back hair, his comments on LGBTQ people have raised alarm, as Georgian Dream has adopted Kremlin-style laws curbing their rights.
The ex-footballer slammed the West for wanting “as many people as possible (to be) neutral and tolerant toward the LGBTQ ideology, which supposedly defends the weak but is, in fact, an act against humanity.”
Football roots
Born in Georgia’s tiny southwestern town of Bolnisi in 1971, Kavelashvili began his career as a professional footballer in the 1980s, playing for clubs in Georgia and Russia and becoming a striker for his country’s national team.
The 53-year-old played for Manchester City between 1995-1997, scoring on debut against bitter crosstown rivals Manchester United.
He then joined Swiss club Grasshoppers, where he spent most of his time on the bench, before stints elsewhere in Switzerland at Zurich, Luzern, Sion, Aarau and Basel.
Kavelashvili was disqualified from running for president of the Georgian Football Federation in 2015 due to a lack of higher education, a requirement for the role.
He has served as an MP for Georgian Dream since 2016 and was elected to the legislature on the party’s list in October 2024 polls — which opposition groups say were rigged and do not recognise.
In 2022, Kavelashvili, alongside other Georgian Dream lawmakers, established a parliamentary faction called People’s Power — an anti-Western group that officially split from the governing party but was widely seen as its satellite.
far-right ideologies.
‘Oligarch’s puppet’
He is known for obscenity-laced statements against opponents and has accused Western leaders of trying to drag Georgia into Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Georgian Dream nominated Kavelashvili for the largely ceremonial post in late November, aiming to strengthen its grip on power.
But the nomination outraged many in Georgia, especially those who have been taking to the streets daily for two weeks to protest Georgian Dream’s drift from its aim of joining the EU.
On the 14th day of mass protests this week, demonstrators did not hold back in expressing their disdain for Kavelashvili.
“I can hardly imagine anyone less suited for the role of head of state,” historian Nika Gobronidze, 53, told AFP.
He said Ivanishvili, the businessman widely believed to be pulling the strings in Georgian politics, chose Kavelashvili as a tool he could control.
“Caligula wanted his horse to be a consul, our oligarch wants his puppet Kavelashvili to be a president,” he said, referring to the Roman emperor.
‘Illegitimate’
The new electoral process makes it a foregone conclusion that Kavelashvili will be the next president, with incumbent Salome Zurabishvili set to lose office.
But Kavelashvili will see his legitimacy undermined from the onset, with constitutional law experts — including an author of Georgia’s constitution, Vakhtang Khmaladze — saying the election will be “illegitimate”.
Tbilisi is currently engulfed in a constitutional crisis, with Zurabishvili demanding a re-run of October’s parliamentary elections.
Parliament had approved its own credentials in violation of a legal requirement to await a court decision on Zurabishvili’s bid to have the election results annulled.
Zurabishvili has declared the new parliament and government “illegitimate” and vowed not to step down at the end of her term on December 29 if Georgian Dream does not organise a fresh vote.
AFP
Finally, the President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Gusau, has announced his resignation from office.
He made the announcement during a press conference at the NFF Glass House in Abuja on Thursday.
Addressing the press, Gusau said he decided to step aside to give other Nigerians the opportunity to contribute to the development of football in the country.
He maintained that despite the failure of the federation’s men’s and women’s teams to qualify for the World Cups, he was leaving the NFF in a better position than he found it.
Gusau also disclosed that he had advised members of his board to resign, but said he was not aware of any board member who had so far stepped down.
“I just want to tell you that I decided to resign my position as the NFF President. I informed my board members and advised them that anybody who wants to follow me to also resign, but as I am talking to you I cannot tell you who and who or how many board members that have resigned,” he said.
Gusau said he would continue to contribute to the development of football in Nigeria, pledging to make his experience and connections within African football available whenever the country needs them.
“By the grace of God I hope I can continue to give my contributions because the experience and relationship we have within the African football, we will never allow it to go in vain. Whenever we need to give our contributions we will come here and give our contributions for the progress of the Nigerian people.”
Earlier in the day, the NFF General Secretary, Mohammed Sanusi, also addressed members of the federation’s secretariat, where he announced his resignation.
Gusau’s resignation comes amid growing criticism of football administration in Nigeria, following recent setbacks suffered by the country’s national teams, particularly the Super Eagles and Super Falcons, who both failed to qualify for the World Cup.
Gusau, who was elected to lead the Nigerian football governing body at the 78th Elective Congress of the Nigeria Football Federation in September 2022, stepped down shortly before the end of his tenure.
The resignation could throw the NFF’s planned electoral process into uncertainty and potentially affect the September 27 elections for the federation’s board, which are scheduled to hold in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has been named the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year after an outstanding 2025-26 Premier League campaign.
The 31-year-old midfielder played a key role in United’s third-place finish, providing a league-record 21 assists and scoring nine goals. His performances also saw him become the second-fastest Manchester United player in the Premier League era to reach 200 goal involvements, achieving the milestone in 314 appearances, behind only Wayne Rooney’s 295.
Fernandes, who joined United in 2020, is the second Portuguese player to win the prestigious award after Cristiano Ronaldo claimed it in 2007 and 2008.
United manager Michael Carrick gave Fernandes greater freedom in attack, a role that allowed the captain to further influence matches with his creativity and vision.
“Bruno can just create moments. He’s bright. I think that little bit of freedom suits him,” Carrick said earlier in the season.
Fernandes has now recorded 110 goals and 106 assists for United. His award also means Manchester United players have won the men’s PFA Player of the Year prize 12 times, more than any other club in England and Wales.
In the women’s category, Manchester City forward Khadija Shaw was named PFA Women’s Player of the Year for the second time after finishing as the Women’s Super League’s top scorer with 21 goals.
Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly won the Men’s Young Player of the Year award after making 53 appearances and scoring nine goals in a breakthrough campaign. Arsenal striker Olivia Smith claimed the Women’s Young Player of the Year award for the second consecutive year.
The PFA Premier League Team of the Year included David Raya, Gabriel Magalhaes, Nico O’Reilly, William Saliba, Jurrien Timber, Bruno Fernandes, Declan Rice, Rayan Cherki, Erling Haaland, Antoine Semenyo and Igor Thiago.
The President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, and its General Secretary, Mohammed Sanusi, have resigned from their respective positions, weeks before the federation’s elective congress.
Sanusi, who previously served as the federation’s chief scribe, confirmed the development in a statement, saying both he and Gusau had stepped down.
“Yes, the news about the resignation of the president and myself is true,” Sanusi reportedly said.
The development came amid mounting pressure on the NFF leadership and less than one month before the federation’s elective congress scheduled to hold on September 27 in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Gusau had, however, dismissed suggestions that he was under pressure when he spoke with journalists on Wednesday during the unveiling of the Nigeria Premier Football League season.
The resignation marks an unprecedented development in the history of football administration in Nigeria, with the NFF’s two top officials leaving office at the same time.
The leadership had been embroiled in a prolonged dispute with the Shehu Dikko-led National Sports Commission over several administrative and funding-related matters.
The disagreement reportedly affected the release of funds to the NFF for the organisation and participation in various domestic, national and international football competitions.
The latest development is expected to have significant implications for the administration of Nigerian football as stakeholders prepare for the September elective congress.
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