President of Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau has once more provided clarity on the essence of sponsored local football tournaments, saying the essence is to identify talents worthy of being nurtured for enhancement of their careers.
Speaking at the trophy presentation of the NFF President Football Tournament – a pre-season tournament for Clubs in the Nigeria National League – inside the NFF Secretariat, Gusau praised the organizers and charged them to ensure the inclusion of at least four teams from the host State, Kaduna, as a way of providing opportunities for rookie players in the hosting State to get much-needed exposure.
“Tournaments like this one are geared towards discovering talents, who will then be nurtured by the discovering Clubs to enhance their careers and take them to greater glory. They are not meant for self-promotion of the sponsors or those whose names appear on the trophy. Personally, I am committed to football development from the grassroots because I am a grassroots person.
“At a larger level, the NFF is committed to wholesale development of Nigeria football, and tournaments like this serve as shop windows for untested but gifted individuals to find their breakthrough.”
The competition is to be organized by Babs Integrated Services, whose CEO is former Nigeria international Tijjani Babangida, who is also the chairman of Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria (PFAN).
The former World Cup scorer used the opportunity of the presentation to praise the NFF President for his huge support during his recent ordeal, following an automobile accident that claimed the lives of his brother and son, and left him and his wife with varying degrees of injuries.
“The NFF President is an awesome person, and I believe that with his involvement alone, the elements will work together to ensure the success of this pre-season tournament. Babs Integrated Services, in conjunction with the Kaduna State Football Association, is primed to deliver an enthralling experience for all stakeholders. Together, we will work to reinvigorate grassroots football and generally elevate Nigeria football. Our objective is to make this an annual event.”
Also present at the presentation ceremony were Chairman of the NPFL Club Owners, Dr Okey Kpalukwu; Chairman of the organizing committee, Hon. Magaji Alhassan and; NFF’s Director of Media and Communications, Dr Ademola Olajire.
The tournament, which is set to bring together NNL clubs from across the country, is scheduled for the Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, 12th – 20th November 2024.
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