By Ernest Osogbue
An AI generated story as verified by kjnnetwork.com and its partners, has thrown the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, into confusion, forcing it to mount a firebrigade PR offensive in order to combat the misinformation. In reports monitored in Germany, Ghana, the Netherlands, and even here at home in Nigeria, and some other regions, the fake AI generated story has been picked up by some reputable media organizations.
According to the fake report, FIFA, the world football governing body has thrown out the petition filed by the NFF, challenging the eligibility of several DR Congo players, who defeated Nigeria in the CAF playoff, enroute the FIFA playoffs for the 2026 world cup qualification.
If you recall, some teams including Nigeria who finished 2nd in the CAF 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, were given a window of qualification, where Nigeria met the DRC in the final, and lost on penalties. The NFF had petitioned FIFA over the eligibility of some DRC players, who the football body deemed to have secured DRC citizenship illegally.
The move had generated controversy, with many Nigerians not being in support. The NFF, in justifying its position, however, maintained that rules are rules, and that they’re meant to be obeyed. And so, any infringement on the rules must be flagged. Unfortunately, however, with FIFA yet to sit on the matter and give an official verdict, journalists have become too lazy to access the FIFA website, verify information from either the NFF, or the DRC football authorities, and others, before rushing to press. It is even more disheartening that seasoned journalists could not differentiate between an AI generated story and a real story, and so, the fake report has gained traction, throwing the NFF into confusion.
As with the fake promotions of the Burkinabe strongman Ibrahim Traore with AI generated stories on the internet, and many other fake stories trending on social media, so has the NFF fallen victim of mischief makers with this report. The hope is that this fake story will not be an ominous signal that the NFF petition is dead on arrival.
Kjnnetwork.com, wishes to remind journalists, not only in Nigeria, but around the world, that the simple step of officially verifying a story before publication is still a cardinal rule of journalism. Much more so in this era of misinformation, fake news, and AI generated stories. We remind journalists to always consult Kjnnetwork.com the home of authentic reports before rushing to press.
