Bahamas Football Association

Bahamas Football Association
CONCACAF
Founded 1967
FIFA affiliation 1968
CONCACAF affiliation between 1961 and 1973[1] [2]
President Anton Sealey
Website http://bahamasfa.com/

The Bahamas Football Association (BFA) is the official football federation in The Bahamas. It was founded in 1967 for men, women, and children to learn more about football. It affiliated with FIFA in 1968. The headquarters are in Nassau. The federation is also in charge of its football clubs and the Bahamanian national team. They control the New Providence Football League's divisions 1 & 2. They are also in charge of the Grand Bahama Football League for both men and women. The BFA is led by (President) Mr. Anton Sealey and the board of executives, Jason McDowall, Kevin Davis, Stanley Darville, Antoine Dias and Bruce LeFleur. The headquarters is managed by Mr. Frederick Lunn (General Secretary), with the Technical Department being directed by Mr. Garry Markham (Technical Director).

The BFA is seen as a flagship developing Association for FIFA. There are many players receiving scholarships in the USA at Division 1 universities. There are also several Bahamian soccer players playing and getting opportunities with Professional clubs in Europe. The BFA competes at all FIFA age groups and genders. The BFA Coaching & Education Scheme offers D,C,B, & A National Coaching License's and continuous seminars and clinics for the development of local coaches and administrators.

Cash-for-votes scandal whistle blowers

On 10 May 2011, Anton Sealey, the President of the Bahamas Football Association was attending an event in the run-up to the 61st FIFA Congress in Zurich, Switzerland, as such, he was unable to attend a meeting in the Hyatt Regency hotel, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad organised by Asian Football Confederation President and FIFA President candidate Mohammed bin Hammam and CONCACAF President and FIFA Vice-President Jack Warner.

Bahamas FA's Vice President (now General Secretary), Fred Lunn, attended the meeting, there Lunn was given brown envelope with the word "Bahamas" on it, containing $40,000 USD. Believing it to be a bribe in a cash-for-votes scandal, funded by bin Hammam, Lunn reported the incident to Sealey who in turn reported it to CONCACAF General Secretary Chuck Blazer. Lunn took a photograph of the money and the envelope before returning them. He later gave journalists a digital copy of the photograph for publication.[3]

As a result, FIFA suspended both Warner and bin Hammam and launched an investigation.[4]

Bahamas-based newspaper The Tribune praised Sealey and Lunn for not accepting the loan: "The attempted bribe was an insult to the whole Caribbean. Those seeking the Caribbean Football Federation's vote obviously saw its members as coming from poor island nations who would never have seen so much money as fell from the brown envelope that was offered them. Many proved to their tempters that poor they might be, but they had pride, they had integrity and although they might never see so much money again, under such tainted conditions they would never stoop so low as to pick it up. As was pointed out, $40,000 for the Caribbean's smaller islands would be the equivalent of several years' salary." [5]

References

  1. ↑ CONCACAF was founded in 1961.
  2. ↑ "Abrahams likely to head CONCACAF". Kingston Gleaner in newspaperarchive.com. 13 February 1973.
    "The Caribbean CONCACAF members are Jamaica, Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba, Haiti, Netherland Antilles, Puerto Rico, Surinam, Trinidad and the Dominican Republic."
  3. ↑ "FIFA cash bribe revealed Bahamas FA". Daily Mail. 31 May 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  4. ↑ "Bin Hammam denied access to Fifa congress". BBC Sport. 1 June 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  5. ↑ "Sir Jack Hayward praises BFA as 'whistleblower'". The Tribune. 1 June 2011. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
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