President of Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) Nkechi Obi has revealed strategic plans aimed to make the country’s women’s leagues more competitive and exciting, reaching out to one million spectators in Match Day attendance per season.
Briefing journalists on Wednesday in Abuja, the chairperson of NWFL, Ms Nkechi Obi, stated that 216 clubs: 16 from the Premier, 20 from the Championship, and 180 from the states’ Leagues across the nation are expected to engage in 820 matches which will involve over 7,000 players, coaches and officials.
“As a national body empowered by statutes to provide the route for women players to reach the pinnacle of their careers, the NWFL will implement a multi-layered stakeholders’ approach that will take into consideration the inputs of states’ football associations, clubs, players, coaches, corporate organisations, policymakers and others who are key components of football development,” Obi stated.
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“This board under my leadership will pursue vigorously a strong women’s football league that is competitive, with excited fans and a distinctive appeal, well-governed, and provides a pathway for professional development of the game and players.
“The rapid expansion of women’s football globally and in Africa especially offers an opportunity to address the lack of capacity in women’s football clubs, shortage of volunteers, poor access to quality facilities, and gaps in the player pathway in Nigeria.
“Business people can create new or buy into existing clubs to intentionally drive a joined-up approach by all stakeholders with the girl-player at the heart of the plan. This will encourage young school girls to join clubs and offer them an unbroken pathway to realise their aspirations.”
Speaking further Obi said the target of her board was to see more girls play the round leather game and break traditional and cultural barriers. She however added that the problem of Nigeria is neither the players nor the coaches but the lack of infrastructure while stating that Nigeria needs about 200 new stadiums across the country to accommodate more players to meet up with international standards.
Richard Jideaka, Abuja Abuja
