OPINION: Interim Management Committee (IMC)/Mmobuosi Partnership Windfall In A Toxic Environment

OPINION: Interim Management Committee (IMC)/Mmobuosi Partnership Windfall In A Toxic Environment            

HARRISON JALLA Chairman PFAN Task Force

The sacked league management company's (LMC) mantra in the last six years was that there is a toxic environment around Nigeria Football that scares sponsors from investing in the NPFL.

It was a manta they were hanging on to for several years. This was after the LMC frittered away over $30m from Supersport as broadcast right fees and billions of Naira from title right sponsorship fees and other fringe sponsorships. From these huge funds that accrued to the LMC nothing was invested on infrastructure and development programmes for the NPFL. 

Even the clubs were short changed and manipulated through their own Association from receiving their annual participation fees from the LMC, no club lifted a finger or protested the massive corruption in NPFL under the LMC watch.

The LMC proceeded to dubiously sell the NPFL commercial rights to two different companies Next Digital Broadcasting and Red Strike Marketing Agency. 

No NPFL club in the last 5 years have earned N10m from any NPFL commercial right. Clubs were even compelled to pay indemnities to match officials, that was the extent the NPFL degenerated into under the League Management Company's watch. 

So how did the Hon.Gbenga Elegbeleye led Interim Management Committee in less than two (2) months secured a pre-season sponsorship with a N100m prize money and N10m participation fees for each of the four (4) NPFL clubs?

Even though the IMC have not officially disclosed their package for the 2022/2023 football season, the IMC chairman has hinted that 2022/2023 season would be on TV and venues that are not TV friendly would not host NPFL matches.

These giant strides are being achieved within two (2) months in the same environment labelled as toxic by the sacked LMC.  

How did the Elegbeleye led IMC detoxify the environment within two (2) months? What did they do differently? Kudos to the IMC leadership there is a ray of hope for the flagship of Nigeria's domestic football and thanks to the Honourable Minister for Sports and Youth Development Chief Sunday Dare who superintend over the sack of the LMC. 

The PFAN Task Force assures all Nigeria Footballers current and retired that PFAN as the official representative of Nigeria professional footballers World wide are co-owners of all commercial rights of NPFL and NFF as funds generated from these commercial rights are solely through the activities of Nigeria Professional Footballers. And that the PFAN task force is working with relevant agencies to recover all stolen funds in the last eight (8) years from the coffers of the Nigeria Football Federation.