The confusion surrounding the proposed international friendly between The Gambia and Senegal appears to have originated from the initial public comments made by the Secretary General of the Gambia Football Federation, Lamin M. Jassey.

In an interview granted to The Point Newspaper amid growing public speculation on social media, Jassey was quoted as categorically dismissing the reports. He stated “Those reports posted on social media claiming that The Gambia will rub shoulders with Senegal in an international friendly match are false.”

That strong and unambiguous denial immediately cast doubt over earlier media reports suggesting that an agreement had already been reached.

However, subsequent statements from senior football and government officials painted a completely different picture.

In a separate engagement with journalist Foday Manneh, the GFF Communications Director, Baboucarr Camara, provided a detailed confirmation of the fixture, including its proposed date and purpose.

Camara said “Yes, I can confirm that the Teranga Lions will host the Scorpions in a friendly international match in Senegal on 31st March 2025. This will serve as an opportunity to present the AFCON they just won to their supporters and as well help to strengthen Senegambia cooperation.”

Clarifying further on the status of arrangements, he added “The modalities of the match is what’s currently being discussed but the game is confirmed.”

At the operational level, Scorpions Team Manager Ousman Drammeh disclosed that directives had already been issued for logistical planning, indicating that internal preparations were ongoing despite the earlier denial.

Scorpions Team Manager explained “The latest directive I got from the board is to start working on my usual administrative and logistical preparations in ensuring that we are fully prepared and that Senegal gets the travel routes they requested to book our flight tickets,”

Emphasising that he had received no counter-instruction suggesting cancellation, he further stated that “So I am yet to know that the game won’t happen anymore, as I’m currently acting on the directive I was given as well as the Coach preparing his list of players.”

From the government’s side, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Bulli Dibba, confirmed institutional awareness of the proposed fixture and clarified the Ministry’s supervisory role. He stated that “I am aware that the Senegalese Federation has reached out to the Gambia Football Federation for a friendly match and the Ministry is aware of that.”

He went on to explain the Ministry’s position regarding involvement and financial backing “Our role is not to handle the arrangement of these matches but if the GFF needs our support financially, we can support it as it is a national team. If they are to arrange, they inform us and we give our blessings. That’s all.”

Following public reaction and the circulation of these contrasting statements, the GFF issued a press release asserting that the Secretary General “did not state that the reports of the match were false” and had instead maintained that he could “neither confirm nor deny” the matter at the time.

Nevertheless, the quote attributed to the Secretary General describing the reports as “false” stands in direct contrast to that later clarification.

The sequence of events places the initial communication from the Federation’s top administrative office at the centre of the confusion, raising concerns about internal coordination and consistency in official messaging.

By Ebrima KB Sonko