{"id":93683,"date":"2026-02-10T18:20:31","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T18:20:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/uncategorized\/gff-welcomes-senegals-offer-while-focusing-on-stadium"},"modified":"2026-02-10T19:37:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T19:37:59","slug":"gff-welcomes-senegals-offer-while-focusing-on-stadium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/gambia\/all-news\/gff-welcomes-senegals-offer-while-focusing-on-stadium","title":{"rendered":"GFF Welcomes Senegal&#8217;S Offer while Focusing on Stadium"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"ap-article-header-tag\"> <strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Gambia. <\/strong> <\/span><b>The Gambia Football Federation (GFF) has cautiously welcomed Senegal\u2019s offer to host The Gambia\u2019s international matches while reaffirming that its primary priority remains preparing the Gambia\u2019s Independence Stadium for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers scheduled to begin in September.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>On Friday, February 6, 2026, Senegal\u2019s Minister of Youth and Sports, Khady Die\u0300ne Gaye, formally invited The Gambia to use Senegalese sporting facilities during the opening ceremony of the International Association of African Sports Press (AIPS\/Africa). The gesture was presented as part of broader efforts to strengthen sporting cooperation between the two countries.<\/p>\n<p>Reacting to the development in an interview with Kerr Fatou, GFF Communications Director Baboucarr Camara confirmed that the federation is aware of the minister\u2019s offer but expressed hope that it will not be required.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hope we do not have to get to that again, because we have strong indications from our own Minister of Youth and Sports, Honourable Bakary Badjie, that by the time AFCON qualifiers resume in September, our stadium will be ready to host international matches,\u201d Mr. Camara said.<\/p>\n<p>He explained that The Gambia\u2019s fixtures in March and June consist only of international friendlies, with competitive qualifiers scheduled for September, October, and November.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Camara also reflected on previous attempts to secure Senegalese venues, noting that such options had been explored multiple times in the past without success.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf the option of playing our matches in Senegal was available during all this period we\u2019ve been playing away, why do we have to travel all the way to Morocco?\u201d he questioned.<\/p>\n<p>He recalled efforts in 2022, including direct appeals from former President Adama Barrow to then Senegalese President Macky Sall, which failed to yield timely approvals. In several instances, responses were reportedly redirected to a management company, highlighting limitations in direct government intervention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf the minister comes today and says they will finally open their doors for us, it is welcome news,\u201d Mr. Camara acknowledged. However, he emphasized the prevailing sentiment within the federation and among supporters.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe hope it doesn\u2019t come to that. Gambian fans are eager to watch their team play at the Independence Stadium again. It has been a very long time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Scorpions last played an AFCON qualifier in Banjul in March 2021, against Angola. With the September qualifiers approaching, Mr. Camara stressed that all efforts should now be concentrated on restoring home fixtures.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery focus and all energy should be directed towards playing our resumption of the African qualification qualifiers at the Independence Stadium,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Asked about potential next steps should Senegal\u2019s offer become necessary, Mr. Camara clarified that any formal arrangement would be handled at the government-to-government level, noting that the GFF does not own the Independence Stadium.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will only get to that if the Independence Stadium is not ready,\u201d he concluded, reiterating the federation\u2019s firm commitment to returning international football to Gambian soil.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ap-article-footer-note\">Find more news and analyses on <span class=\"ap-highlight-country\">Gambia<\/span> on the <span class=\"ap-highlight-brand\">Africa Press<\/span> website<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Gambia. The Gambia Football Federation (GFF) has cautiously welcomed Senegal\u2019s offer to host The Gambia\u2019s international matches while reaffirming that its primary priority remains preparing the Gambia\u2019s Independence Stadium for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers scheduled to begin in September. On Friday, February 6, 2026, Senegal\u2019s Minister of Youth and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":93682,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[260],"class_list":["post-93683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-gambia"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>GFF Welcomes Senegal&#039;S Offer while Focusing on Stadium - Gambia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"-article-header-tag&quot;&gt; Africa-Press - Gambia. 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