Burkina Faso Government Rejects Velud As National Team Head Coach

Burkina Faso’s Ministry of Sports has revealed it has not approved Hubert Velud as the next coach of the Stallions.

The Frenchman had been chosen by the Football Association to fill the Stallions’ vacant coaching position and since arrived in Ouagadougou after signing a two-year deal.

The sports ministry said it did not recognise Velud as the national team’s head coach because the application process was incomplete.

The ministry decision is alleged to have been influenced former national team players who believe that the unilateral decision violates the Burkina Faso Football Federation (FBF)’s constitution.

The FBF, however, says Velud’s appointment follows a “thorough” recruitment procedure.

Velud will be in charge of both the Stallions’ 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and part of 2026 World Cup campaigns.

The former Sudan coach first competitive matches with Burkina Faso will be qualifiers for the 2023 Nations Cup in Ivory Coast, which begin in the international window from 30 May to 14 June.

Velud was previously in charge of Sudan national team where he was relieved his duties after Falcons of Jediane struggled in the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup.

He managed Togo between 2009 and 2010, and was one the coaches caught in the machine gun ambush ahead of the 2010 Nations Cup tournament in Angola.