News
Did Ivory Coast Goalkeeper wear charms at AFCON Final?
Did Ivory Coast Goalkeeper wear charms at AFCON Final?
Social media is buzzing with a video insinuating that the goalkeeper of Ivory Coast, Yahia Fofana, wore charms at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final against Nigeria.
The claim is FALSE
Ivory Coast emerged victorious on Sunday Feb. 11 against Nigeria defeating the Super Eagles 2-1.
The circulating video showed a goalkeeper with jersey number I6 and Name tag “ASC JARRAF”. The goal keeper had a black object strapped to his waist with a white rope.
Â
Many Nigerians including former senator and activist, Shehu Sani, have reacted to the video on Twitter urging the International Football Federation (FIFA) to investigate the allegation of usage of “juju” (charm) by the goalkeeper of the Ivory Coast.
Â
Checks showed that the player whose image is circulating with a charm tied to his back is not the Ivory Coast goalkeeper.
Â
This is corroborated by the lineup for the AFCON final which revealed that the goalkeeper for Ivory Coast was Yahia Fofana and not the goalie in the viral video.
Â
Yahia Fofana (born 21 August 2000) is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Ligue 2 club Angers. He was born in France, but he plays for the Ivory Coast national team.
Â
Further findings showed that the inscription on the jersey which shows ACF JARAAF (Association Sportive et Culturelle Jaraaf) is a Senegalese professional football club based in Dakar. They play in the top division in Senegalese football
CONCLUSION
Â
The claim that the goalkeeper of Ivory Coast, Yahia Fofana, wore charms at the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final against Nigeria is FALSE.
A series of images circulating across Facebook, Instagram, X, and WhatsApp appears to show women displaying underwear branded with the photograph of Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf.
The images sparked widespread reactions.
Some social media users accused the governor of turning empowerment programmes into political propaganda. Others mocked what they described as an unusual and inappropriate distribution of government items.
The photographs seemed convincing.
Women could be seen holding up underwear allegedly bearing the governor’s image during what appeared to be a public gathering.
But did the governor actually distribute such items?
WABMA Debunker investigated.
The first step was to determine where the images originated.
A reverse image search led investigators to a video posted by Kano-based influencer and political supporter Fatima Nasir, popularly known as “Teemah Cool.”
The original footage showed women displaying underwear during a political gathering.
But there was a crucial difference.
The underwear visible in the original video did not contain Governor Abba Yusuf’s photograph.
This raised an important question.
If the governor’s image was absent in the original footage, how did it suddenly appear in the viral pictures?
To answer this, further forensic analysis was conducted on the circulating images.
The findings were revealing.
Digital examination showed signs of image manipulation. Analysis using SynthID Verifier detected evidence that portions of the viral images had been edited and artificially generated.
The governor’s photograph appeared to have been digitally inserted into the underwear after the original footage was recorded.
In other words, the images circulating online were not an accurate representation of what participants displayed at the event.
Investigators also examined claims that the underwear formed part of an official empowerment programme sponsored by the Kano State Government.
No evidence was found to support this assertion.
There were no government announcements, policy documents, media briefings, or credible news reports indicating that such items were distributed as part of any state empowerment initiative.
Further checks showed that the original gathering was linked to a political event in Kano during a visit by Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu.
Participants reportedly engaged in symbolic political displays connected to local political rivalries.
Nothing in the available evidence suggests that Governor Abba Yusuf authorized, distributed, or endorsed underwear bearing his image.
So what is really true here?
The gathering shown in the original footage did occur.
Women were seen displaying underwear during the event.
What did not occur was the distribution of underwear branded with Governor Abba Yusuf’s photograph.
That element was added later through digital manipulation.
VERDICT
FALSE.
There is no evidence that Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf distributed women’s underwear branded with his photograph as empowerment items.
The viral images were digitally altered, with the governor’s image inserted into the original footage after it was recorded.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Manipulated images can spread rapidly online and create false impressions about public officials, government programmes, and political events.
As election related discussions intensify across Nigeria, altered photographs and AI generated content are becoming increasingly common tools for misinformation.
Verifying the source of an image and examining whether it has been digitally modified remain essential steps before sharing sensitive political content.
CONCLUSION
The claim is False. Reverse image searches traced the content to an original video posted by influencer Fatima Nasir (“Teemah Cool”), where no governor’s image appeared on the underwear. Forensic analysis found evidence of digital manipulation, and no official government records or credible media reports support the claim.
DID KANO GOVERNOR ABBA YUSUF DISTRIBUTE BRANDED UNDERWEAR TO WOMEN AS EMPOWERMENT ITEMS?
⚧️ Ep. 121–WABMA Fake News Debunker;
