‘The Big Sports Dialogue 1.0  Has Laid Roadmap for Recovery’

Duro Ikhazuagbe 

The Big Sports Dialogue 1.0 which held on Monday in Lagos with virtually all the country’s top sports administrators, policy makers, sports marketers, private sector leaders and sports media personalities in attendance, has laid the pathway for the recovery from the present slide which includes Super Eagles failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Participants at the event which took place at the Villa Dome, Ikoyi, Lagos, were unanimous that Nigeria’s sport urgently requires restructuring guided by professionalism, competence and long term planning.

Convener of The Big Dialogue 1.0, Aaron Akerejola of Arise NewsTelevision, made it clear from the start of the summit that it wasn’t for finger-pointing but for charting a fresh, honest roadmap for Nigerian sports.

Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Malam Shehu Dikko, delivered the strongest defence yet for the scrapping of the Federal Ministry of Sports and the creation of the Commission, calling it a courageous decision by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reposition the country’s sports.

Dikko insisted that it was no longer business as usual at the NSC under his watch as Chairman and Hon. Bukola Olopade as Director General.

“It’s no longer business as usual.  This is part of why we insisted that only competent men and women will henceforth lead our national sports federations. You can see that from the elections held recently,” observed the NSC Boss.

“We insisted every Federation must include women. We have created a proper reward system. We are cleaning up the sector and more reforms are coming,” pledged Dikko who was unanimously endorsed by the participants as the right choice to lead the new NSC.

Renowned Sports Marketer, Mike Itemuagbo, harped on the need for sports administrators and the media to protect brands as constant talks about unverified corruption in the broadcast and print have negative effects on sports sponsorship.

He also talked about  tax holidays for corporate sponsors, rebates for long-term investments and clear policies that protect investor interests.

“Sports is big business. Let Nigeria treat it like big business,” concludes Itemuagbo.

In the panel that featured Dikko; National Institute for Sports Director General, Phillip Shaibu; Amaju Pinnick, a serving Deputy Chairperson of FIFA Men’s National Teams Competitions Committee and GTI’s Nelson Ineh, there was a general consensus that the previous sports policy in operation lacked direction, structure and integrity.

Shaibu painted at the sorry state under which the NIS existed when he took over as DG. The former Edo State Deputy Governor stressed that the Athlete Development Centre in Abuja was allowed to rot away while the headquarters of the institute in Lagos was a shadow of itself from what it was conceived to do for Nigerian sports.

Now armed with a 10-year reform document and the creation of six new zonal offices which are yet to take off fully, Shaibu promised the rebuilding of the NIS has started in earnest.

In his reaction to a question from the audience, former NFF President Pinnick delivered a necessary wake-up call to Nigerians. 

He insisted that Nigerian football needs a complete orientation and reorientation from both the citizens and the key stakeholders managing the game.

According to Pinnick, “the problems affecting football development in the country go far beyond tactics, governance structures, or financial challenges.”

Pinnick stressed that many of the tensions slowing down progress come from “deep-seated bitterness, emotional rifts, and long-standing personal animosities within the football ecosystem.”

The third and final panel was a no-hold-barred session of bare knuckles. Founder of  Nigeria’s first sports radio, BrilaFM, Dr. Larry Izamoje, convener of the first Niger Delta Sports Festival, Hon. Itiako Ikpokpo; and Rivers State Sports Commissioner, Barr. Chris Green, didn’t mince words in dismissing the rot in the system.

They were blunt on no more cosmetic leadership; no more abandoned projects and no more neglect of athletes by administrators. Both Ikpokpo and Green specifically asked the leadership of the NFF to resign for failing in their responsibilities to Nigerians.

“Fix welfare, fix infrastructure, fix grassroots sports. And if a Federation President cannot bring in sponsors, he should resign from the position rather than wait for government funding.”

Chairman of the Organising Committee of the Dialogue, Osaze Ebueku, concluded that the event proved that the desire for reform is strong and widespread: “We are encouraged by the dialogue’s outcomes and the unwavering resolve of those driving change in the sector. These discussions showed a collective commitment to elevating Nigerian sports from a pastime to a powerful economic engine.”