Comoros weigh up FIFA’s $20m opportunity to reshape domestic football

The Comoros Football Federation (FFC) has welcomed the prospect of receiving up to $20m through FIFA Forward Enterprise, with president Said Ali Said Athouman arguing that the project should be judged according to the needs of each federation rather than wider European concerns.

The initiative, promoted by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, could provide the island federation with unprecedented financial resources. The money would be used to modernise football in the Comoros and support the development of infrastructure.

Said Ali Said Athouman has defended the federation’s willingness to consider the plan, despite reservations raised by a number of football organisations in Europe.

“We should not reject it without studying it first. If I were European, perhaps I would not think this way. But I live in a different reality,” he said.

His comments underline what he describes as a pragmatic approach to the proposal. Rather than dismissing FIFA Forward Enterprise because of criticism from elsewhere, the FFC president believes it should first be assessed on the opportunities it could create for Comorian football.

The potential investment would represent a major source of funding for the FFC, which has an interest in securing the means to improve the domestic game and develop its facilities. The proposal could therefore give the federation the ability to undertake projects that would otherwise be difficult to finance.

For Said Ali Said Athouman, the question is not simply whether the initiative has attracted opposition in Europe. He believes the circumstances facing African federations must also be taken into account when the plan is evaluated.

Many federations on the continent operate with fragile economic models, making access to significant investment an important lever for growth. In that context, the possible $20m allocation is viewed by the Comoros as a financial opportunity that deserves serious consideration.

The FFC president has consequently urged his counterparts to examine FIFA Forward Enterprise through the realities of their own football environments. His position is that decisions should be based on the practical requirements of individual federations, rather than being shaped solely by debates taking place at continental level.

The Comoros have not presented the project as something to be accepted without scrutiny. Instead, Said Ali Said Athouman’s message is that it should be studied before any final judgment is made.

For the island federation, the prospect of up to $20m is difficult to ignore. The investment could bring new resources into the game, help modernise local football and provide funding for infrastructure. Those possibilities explain why the FFC is prepared to examine the initiative positively, even while reservations remain elsewhere in football.

The federation’s stance places the Comoros among those seeking to assess the proposal according to their own financial and sporting needs. Its president has made clear that, from that perspective, rejecting the opportunity before studying it would not be the preferred approach.