Lydia Nsekera – The ‘Iron Lady’ of football

BUJUMBURA – Burundi’s Lydia Nsekera has entered the history books after becoming the first woman co-opted onto Fifa’s Executive Committee last week.

Nsekera, 45, is the only woman in charge of a national federation thanks to her role as president of the Burundi Football Federation (FFB) and was already a member of Fifa committees for women’s football, the women’s World Cup and the organising committee for Olympic football tournaments.This latest appointment is just the next step in Nsekera’s groundbreaking career.Her rise to prominence has been remarkable – she took over the running of a garage left to her by her husband after his death in 2003 before breaking into the ‘terribly macho’ world of Burundian football.Now she is hoping to blaze a trail for other women to take up prominent roles in football administration.Her friends put her success down to ‘her courage, her tenacity and her intelligence,’ while her many detractors in the world of Burundian football talk of an ‘authoritarian and abrupt’ woman.’The secret of my success is simple,’ Nsekera told AFP recently. ‘I work, I work and I work.’Her love of the game comes from her father, a member of Burundi’s royal family and himself a club president.’I started accompanying my father to football matches when I was five years old. That is how I caught the bug,’ she says.Tall and athletic, Nsekera stood out as a basketball player and as a high-jumper before starting her own women’s football team.She then gradually worked her way to the top of the FFB hierarchy, moving from her role in charge of the women’s game to elected president in 2004.Nsekera flourished in the latter role, bringing stability to Burundian football after two years of ‘total paralysis.’’Lydia imposed her own style straight away and brought stability to the FFB,’ says FFB executive secretary Jeremie Manirakiza.’She will go as far as she wants thanks to her work ethic and authority.’Needless to say, her compatriots are proud of her promotion to Fifa’s ExCo.’The historic co-optation of Lydia Nsekera onto the committee that runs world football is a source of great pride for Burundi, and an honour for this woman, for our country and for all the women of the world,’ Burundi’s sports minister Jean-Jacques Nyenimigabo told AFP.’It is recognition of her qualities as a leader and as a person,’ he added of a woman nicknamed the ‘Thatcher of Burundian football’.Nsekera is known as the Iron Lady of world football, just as the former British Prime Minister was to the world of politics.And yet despite her rise to the top, football in Burundi has made little progress in recent years.In the 1990s, Burundi competed in the World Youth Championship while Bujumbura club Viatl’O reached the final of the African Cup-Winners’ Cup.Those heights have not been scaled since.’Burundi has slipped down the African rankings, and it is her fault because she does not look after the game,’ said one club president, who wished to remain anonymous.’She has restored order to the Federation, and if results on the pitch are still missing, that is not just her responsibility,’ insists Nyenimigabo in her defence, blaming instead the scars of a long civil war for the country’s current footballing problems.- Nampa-AFP

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.

The Namibian uses AI tools to assist with improved quality, accuracy and efficiency, while maintaining editorial oversight and journalistic integrity.