In its first formal reaction to Total Promotions laying claims to the broadcast rights of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), the league body has asked the general public and its existing and potential partners to disregard the claims.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Nigeria Premier League Limited/Gte described the claims as total unfounded with no legal validity.
“We wish to reiterate that these claims made by ‘Total Promotions Limited’ are entirely unfounded, factually incorrect and devoid of any legal validity”, the Secretary to the NPFL Board, Danladi Ibrahim wrote.
The lawyer offered judicial backing of the expressed position of the NPFL with a reference to a 2010 judgement by a Federal High Court judge, who ordered the liquidation of the Nigeria Football League Limited, the body that granted broadcast rights to Total Promotions in 2006.
“Note that in Suit No. FHC/ ABJ/ CS/179/2010 (Sam Jaja vs Nigeria Football League Ltd and four others), Justice Okorowo of the Federal High Court gave a judgement ordering the mandatory winding up of NFL Limited, the entity that granted the broadcast rights to Total Promotions”.
He said that the 2010 judgement invalidated all rights assigned to Total Promotions. “By the judgement, all rights assigned to Total Promotions by the Nigeria Football League Ltd became extinguished as the later was consequently stripped of the licensed to organise a league”, the statement continued.
Relying on positions of the law on contracts, the NPFL canvassed that “the concept of ‘frustration of contract’ and force majeure are recognised under Nigeria’s Contract Laws.
“The execution of the contract between Total Promotions and NFL Limited became impossible after the later became insolvent and was wound up by the court”.
The NPFL also wondered how Total Promotions could still be laying claims to the NPFL broadcast rights when the contract it was relying on has expired and the entity that assigned the rights is dead based on a court order.
“Besides the fact that the contract for the said broadcast rights granted Total Promotions has expired, the entity that granted the rights is dead by virtue of the cited Court order”, the Board Secretary declared.
The Nigeria Premier League Limited/Gte (with RC No. 6862169) was incorporated at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) on 2nd February 2023 and licensed by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to organise the Nigeria Premier Football League.
The NPL Limited is not a successor in title to any previous company. It is also on record that the defunct League Management Company had a running legal confrontation with Total Promotions and prevailed in suits filed in different jurisdictions by the company.
Public commentators have been asking if Total Promotions own a lifetime right to the league broadcast and noted with concern that the company has no record of broadcast production, no equipment and no broadcast platforms.
At the time they kept the rights between 2006 to 2011, the company outsourced the match productions to Nigeria Television Authority, showing one game per week.
It has acquired a reputation for irritant confrontation to companies seeking to partner the league over the years by writing threat letters and publishing newspaper advertisement aiming to scare off corporate organisations from the league.
