Renowned sports marketing company, HotSports is at an advanced stage of securing Corporate Nigeria’s support for the Super Falcons’ campaign at this summer’s FIFA Women in Australia and New Zealand, the ninth edition of the championship. The month-long tournament kicks off 20 July.
While the elaborate plan will soon be unfolded and executed, HotSports is already excited about the original FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy, which is coming to Nigeria for only the third time on 26 March in Abuja. HotSports President/CEO, Mr Taye Ige said his organisation would exploit the trophy tour, using it as a launchpad for its project.
After a recent meeting with the President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau in Abuja, Ige said: “I am happy at the conversation we have had with the NFF President, which centred on doing something special for the Super Falcons around the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
“There is no gainsaying that this is the biggest Women’s World Cup in history and there is the need to get as much support as possible for the team to have the best preparations possible for the finals”.
Nigeria’s senior women national team have never missed any of the previous editions of the global tournament since it debuted in China in 1991. Four-time champions United States, Germany (twice winners), 2011 champions Japan, Norway (1995 winners), Sweden and Brazil are the other countries that have the same number of appearances as Nigeria.
The tournament in Australia and New Zealand will indeed be the biggest FIFA Women’s World Cup ever. It will be the first to feature the expanded format of 32 teams – from the previous 24 – replicating the same format used for the men’s FIFA World Cup. It will also be the first FIFA Women’s World Cup to have more than one host nation, and also be the first senior FIFA World Cup of either gender to be held across multiple confederations – Australia is within FIFA’s Asian Confederation while New Zealand is a member of the Oceania Confederation.
The HotSports chief said that the meeting had been facilitated by a member of the NFF Board, Ms Aisha Falode. The immediate past Chairperson of the Nigeria Women Football League expressed her enthusiasm to have Corporate Nigeria coalesce support for the Super Falcons ahead of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
In a move that further underscores the desire of the present NFF administration to take the branding, marketing and general management of the women national teams to levels never previously contemplated, Gusau said he agreed to meet with Ige in a turf-exploring session because the Federation is ready to consider proposals that would boost the women’s game.
“Women’s football has earned the right to greater attention, interest and funding, and we have to follow in the paths of what FIFA is doing for the game. We have 32 teams playing in Australia and New Zealand, making this the biggest-ever Women’s World Cup. Our Super Falcons definitely need all the support to prepare adequately for the finals”, Gusau said.
The Super Falcons are in Mexico for a four-nation tournament involving the host nation as well as FIFA World Cup-bound Costa Rica and Colombia; after which they will take part in another tournament in the Republic of Türkiye in the Middle East in April.
