President Bola Tinubu has directed a comprehensive reform of Nigerian football following a series of setbacks in the country’s attempts to qualify for major regional, continental and global competitions.
Under the directive, the Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC) is to work with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Secretariat and other key stakeholders to maintain continuity in essential football administration while overseeing a broad and consultative reform process.
The President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement issued on Thursday titled, ‘President Tinubu Directs Comprehensive Football Reform’.
Tinubu said the reform was necessary because of longstanding structural weaknesses in Nigerian football despite the sport’s huge popularity and the considerable public attention and resources it attracts.
“The reform must respond to a longstanding need to strengthen governance, administration, stakeholder representation, development pathways, domestic competitions and accountability across Nigerian football,” the President said.
He contrasted the struggles of Nigerian football with progress recorded in other sports since the restructuring of the sports sector and the re-establishment of the NSC.
According to Tinubu, the continued underperformance of football was largely attributable to internal structural weaknesses rather than a shortage of talent, public support or resources.
“Football, Nigeria’s most popular sport and the greatest beneficiary of public support, investment and national attention, has continued to struggle basically due to structural deficits within the system,” he said.
The President said Nigerian football must develop stronger institutions capable of matching the country’s abundance of talent and passion with sustained performance and effective administration.
He described the reform as an urgent corrective measure rather than a routine administrative exercise.
The process will involve appropriate consultations with the world and continental football governing bodies, FIFA and CAF, while ensuring that Nigeria continues to meet its obligations under the international football governance framework.
Tinubu urged football stakeholders and Nigerians to support the transition and contribute to building a more effective, transparent and accountable football system.
The directive comes amid a challenging period for Nigerian football, with the Super Eagles facing difficulties in recent qualification campaigns for the World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations, alongside longstanding disputes over the administration and governance of the NFF.
