Nsekera becomes the first woman to join executive board

Fifa yesterday appointed a woman to its executive board for the first time in the soccer body’s 108-year history.

Lydia Nsekera, president of the Burundi Football Association, was invited to become the 25th member of Fifa’s executive committee, which is responsible for decisions including the host countries of the World Cup.

Nsekera will take her position after Fifa’s 62nd Congress in Budapest this week. A formal election for a regular female committee member will be held in 2013 once Fifa’s new statutes come into force, the organisation said in a statement following a meeting of the executive board yesterday.

The changes to the statutes come after Fifa’s president Sepp Blatter started a program to overhaul several of the organisation’s structures following a series of corruption allegations that have tarnished the soccer body’s reputation.

The appointment of Nsekera brings Fifa into line with regional bodies in Europe and Asia, which already both have women on their executive boards.