Possible reasons for
Souleiman Waberi’s abrupt resignation

President of the Djibouti Football Federation and third vice-president of the Confederation of African Football, Souleiman Hassan Waberi suddenly resigned from his federation on March 7, 2024 after being suspended from all football-related activities by the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

Souleiman Waberi steps down as president of the FDF.

Without giving any explanation, Souleiman Waberi had a short memo published relating his “decision to resign from my position as (sic) President of the Djibouti Football Federation as of 07/03/2024”.

A surprise for the general public, but not for local soccer insiders. “It was certain that he wouldn’t last long,” says a member of the Federation. “Since he managed to get the statutes changed so that he could stand again in the next elections, it was only a matter of time.”

FIFA came to his aid in 2021

Elected head of the Djibouti Football Federation in 2012, Waberi has not really contributed to the development of national soccer. Between conflicts, unfinished projects and a lack of transparency, the president has benefited above all from the work of former French coach Julien Mette with the national team to restore an unflattering record; the Requins, for example, having managed to qualify for a group phase for the first time in their history as part of the AFCON 2023 qualifiers.

Thanks to various political alliances, and the fact that he had turned against his friend, former CAF president Ahmad Ahmad, he had secured a position as third vice-president of CAF in 2021. An astonishing rise for a man who until then had had no real support or clout.

A few months after his promotion, Waberi had asked FIFA for help when his government, annoyed by internal mismanagement – particularly regarding national team travel – began to take a close interest in the FDF’s affairs. Following threats of suspension by FIFA for political interference and a high-profile visit by then General Secretary Fatma Samoura, Waberi obtained a reprieve from the national authorities.

A donation from the Moroccan Federation not listed

Although relatively calm, relations between the two parties soured again almost ten days ago. At the end of February, the Ministry of Youth and Sports sent an official letter asking Waberi to explain two projects that were not part of the FIFA Forward program. The first, a soccer pitch donated by the Moroccan Football Federation, and the second, a building for the federation.

With no response, the Ministry sent a new letter on March 4 officially suspending the federation president from all soccer activities. While waiting to find out whether a judicial inquiry will be opened, an audit of the FDF will be carried out by the Ministry, which accuses Waberi of having failed to notify any authority concerning the donation of the land by the Moroccan federation, in particular the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as the real estate project. It is also curious to note that the land in question is used mainly by a club, AS Gendarmerie Nationale.

Following Waberi’s resignation, the first vice-president, Mohamed Yassin Yonis, will take over as interim president.