The Nigeria Football Federation has launched a crackdown on referees who may be involved in match-fixing, as the country’s football leagues reach decisive stages, The PUNCH reports.

In an internal memo signed by the Secretary of the NFF Refereeing Development Committee, Mohammed Ameenu, the federation warned all referees in the Nigeria Premier Football League, Nigeria National League, Nigeria Women’s Football League, and the Nationwide League One, which kicked off on Wednesday, to uphold fairness and protect the reputation of the game.

The NFF fears that clubs, their agents, and other football stakeholders may attempt to influence referees in order to gain an unfair advantage. In response, the federation has set up an independent monitoring committee to observe all matches and report any suspicious behaviour.

“It is obvious that all the three Leagues (NPFL, NNL and NWFL) are at a critical stage while the NLO will kick-start,” the memo stated.

“We are conscious that teams and their agents within and outside the refereeing, as well as the football circles, will mount pressure on you in order to court favours for their teams and paymasters.”

According to the NFF, the new monitoring committee will operate independently, with members deployed across all match centres to observe and report any actions that go against the rules or damage the image of refereeing.

“The President and the General Secretary of the NFF have instituted a powerful monitoring committee with members sent to all match centres in order to independently report any observations that are not in line with the provisions of the laws of the game or tend to bring both refereeing and the game into disrepute,” the memo continued.

Referees were also told that most matches will be streamed live, making their actions visible and open to public judgment.

“All referees appointed for matches… are hereby instructed to uphold the principles of equity, fairness and justice.”

In a clear warning, the federation said referees who were found guilty of influencing matches or receiving favours would face heavy punishment. These include long-term bans and possible arrests.

“Anyone found to have acted contrarily will not only be suspended but banned from any football activity for not less than ten (10) years,” the memo stated.

“This constitutes an attempt to determine or manipulate the outcome of matches outside the Laws of the game, and therefore, implies match-fixing.”

Beyond the sporting ban, the NFF also threatened to involve security agencies.

“Anyone found to have acted in these negative ways shall also be handed over to State Security Services for further investigation and prosecution.”