On Tuesday in Doha, Qatar, FIFA honored seasoned Nigerian sports journalist Kunle Solaja.
Former Sports Editor of the now-defunct Concord Newspapers and the Guardian Newspapers Solaja received a certificate of achievement and a replica of the World Cup trophy, both of which were presented by Brazilian legend Ronaldo, along with 81 other reputable journalists who have attended and covered nearly a score of the quadrennial global football fiesta and other glitzy competitions.
The other African on the list, Mark Gleeson of South Africa, was the only other member of the continent.
Enrique Macaya Márquez, an 88-year-old Argentine freelancer who is covering his 17th World Cup in Qatar, was the highlight of the ceremony. Before his death in 1995, Diego Lucero, a Uruguayan who had covered every World Cup between 1930 and 1994, had accumulated one more World Cup coverage than Macaya.
After starting his amazing journey in Mexico in 1986, Solaja traveled to the following World Cup finals: Italy in 1990, USA in 1994, France in 1998, Korea/Japan in 2002, Germany in 2006, South Africa in 2010, Brazil in 2014, and Russia in 2018, before reaching the current finals in Qatar.
According to NFF General Secretary, Dr. mohammed Sanusi, “We are proud to congratulate and celebrate one of our own, Mr. Kunle Solaja, for the honour bestowed on him by FIFA. To attend 10 FIFA World Cup finals is not a joke. Mr. Solaja is a man competent, diligent and passionate about his trade, and we join FIFA to celebrate him as an illustrious servant of the beautiful game.”
