State Of Football in Nigeria: Reasons to Be Cheerful After the COVID Year 2020

Our football will be better for it. While we were locked down in our homes by the government, in their effort to curb the spread of corona virus, the sports ministry, NFF and LMC were busy working out a revolution for football in Nigeria. 

The COVID wasn't funny at all! 

It was like the third world war. It was like a biological weapon shot at the human race. And many wondered why with such advancement in the world today, medical science couldn't quickly find cure and stop the rampaging organism as simple as corona virus. The year 2020 was shaken by fear as we watched in spellbound as men, businesses and industries go down. 

Sports was the worst hit by the pandemic. The Japan Olympics was postponed, and here in Nigeria, the highly anticipated National Sports Festival, Edo 2020 was postponed also. The 2019/20 football league season was brought to a premature end as death toll rised across the globe. And as I write this post no league in Nigeria has been able to kick-off. The LMC has set November 13 as the tentative kick-off date for NPFL, but we are watching as some countries are now beginning to experience second wave of the pandemic. 

As we’re all looking ahead to the end of this global fiasco, after the year of COVID, we may have a different perspective on what may become the new normal - The World New Order! 

The New World Order

The big question is, can fans return to the stadium? In Europe where football has resumed, games where played under closed doors. With the second wave of the pandemic now raging and rumour of a leaked document of another version of Corona virus tagged - COVID 21 to breakout from Canada in January 2021.

The controversial ID2020 vaccination, has even added more uncertainty,  and some school of thoughts concluded an emergence of a new world order. One world government, one world economy and one world religion that will be run by a massive smart SOCHI (artificial intelligence) technology - the internet of things. It means the interconnection via the internet of computing chips embedded in humans and everyday objects, tv, cars, houses, roads...enabling them to send and receive data real time. 

It means everything including the human being can be identified, traced and controlled through internet interconnectivity. 

Only those who allow the SOCHI chips to be embedded in their back right-hand or forehead will be allowed to move around freely and make their daily transactions, which can be traced and controlled by a Super-computer.  The implication is that only players and fans who has taken the vaccination and embedded the SOCHI chips will be allowed to play or allowed into the stadium to watch. 

As it is today, football can only be watched via television and internet streaming. Government officials are bent on enforcing social-distancing, wearing of face mask and isolation (quarantine) of infected persons. 

Nigerian Stadiums

No football League or tournament is going on right now. Playing under closed doors may not affect fans that much, because they hardly follow the local leagues. But it will be a problem and a huge set back to LMC, who has been working tirelessly to increase stadium attendance at NPFL games. 

Viewing Centers

It is a different scenario when it comes to viewing centers in Nigeria. Fans had defiled government orders to jam-pack viewing centers across the country, during UEFA Champions League finals (Bayern Munich Vs PSG) and English FA Cup finals (Arsenal Vs Chelsea).. The law enforcement agencies may have turned their faces away as view centers keep getting fill week in, week out. Well, there's no cause for alarm as such gathering hasn't triggered in anyway the increase of COVID 19 cases here in Nigeria. 

Nigeria National Teams

Most qualifiers were postponed due to the COVID, until November and next year 2021. Super Eagles top AFCON qualifiers group L after defeating Benin 2 - 1 and Lesotho 4 - 2. They are slated to play Sierra Leone this November

Flying Eagles (U21) and Golden Eaglets (U17) are also starting qualifiers this November. Laden Bosso was earlier appointed to handle the Flying Eagles and Fatai Amoo to handle the Golden eaglets

Super Falcons, the women national team also got a new foreign coach,  Randy Waldrum from USA. He will be overseeing all the women national teams. 

Nigeria Women League

The women league has decided to rebrand in other to reposition the Nigeria women football for a more global recognitions - as part of Samuel dare's Reformation agenda. 

The introduction of Caf Women Champions League has given more impetus to women league to improve their standard. Clubs like River Angels, Ibom stars, Nasarawa Amazons has built up capacity to face the new challenge. All good for women football in Africa as a whole. 

Nigeria Men League

The LMC are doing a lot to collaborate with the sports ministry to ensure professionalism in league. Every club must be properly licensed and show an evidence of 200 millon Naira, before they will be allowed to participate in the upcoming season. 

One of the major milestone LMC achieved this year is on media deals...revocation of the contract they had with Next Digital TV for none performance and bringing in a more established and experienced media Group: Redstrike. We are expected to see a much more media presence and engagement as they establish NPFL TV next season. 

Samuel Dare's Sports Reform

The Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare has reassured that professionalism in Nigerian football development being promoted by the ongoing reforms of the nation’s football will make Nigerian Leagues better and put it at par with others around the world.

The minister and LMC are ensuring proper licensing of clubs, and financial control, to make sure each club has what it takes, enough finances to execute the upcoming league season. 

Dare explains that the step is critical for building stakeholder confidence following the reclassification of sports from social service to business as part of President Buhari’s commitment to make sports an important economic factor. .

Adopt A stadium

As part of the sports reform strategies, the sports ministry has began to concession stadiums to private individuals for renovation/upgrade and proper management. 

This year alone, Africa's richest man and business mongul, Aliko Dangote has moved in to renovate and upgrade the MKO Abiola Stadium Abuja to an ultra modern world class stadium. 

Adebutu Kensington popularly known as "Baba Ijebu" has signed an agreement to renovate the grossly dilapidated National Stadium Surulere Lagos. It is all for the good of the sports industry here in Nigeria.. 

Grassroots Regional Leagues

Grassroots football is getting more organized as we see the whole spectrum breakdown into regional leagues and tournaments. 

The best thing to happen to grassroots football this year is the Surulere Regional League (SRL). The SRL has put together a group of egg heads who are turning the league into something beyond your wildest imagination at this level. 

The SRL has sealed media deals with Elegbete TV and Reel Radio. All the games will be stream  live video and radio broadcast on the Internet. They have also closed a deal with KinScore for real time data collection, stats and record publications online. The SRL sealed a partnership deal with Haggai sportswear to produce all the uniform and training kits for all clubs participating in the league. 

With all that have been put in place during this COVID lockdown there's reason to be cheerful when sports fully resumes.