Sport: Beyond The Razzmatazz Of NFF’s New Secretariat

On 18 July, 2013, Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan, represented by the Vice president, Namadi Sambo, commissioned the permanent secretariat of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, inside the Package B of the National Stadium in Abuja.


The opening of the gorgeous building ended NFF’s 68 years of using temporary offices for its administrative duties. The former secretariat of the football federation then known as Nigeria Football Association, NFA, was located on Ogunlana Drive in Surulere, Lagos before it was moved to Abuja at the dawn of this millennium.

Since the commissioning of the new edifice, encomiums have been pouring in for the Presidential Task Force, PTF, and the National Sports Commission, NSC, the two bodies that facilitated the construction of the new secretariat.

While expressing joy about the new secretariat during its unveiling, Assistant Director (Media) in the NFF, Ademola Olajire, thanked the Federal Government, President Goodluck Jonathan and chairman and members of the presidential Task Force, as well as chairman of the National Sports Commission, NSC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, for the magnificent building.

There is no doubt the new secretariat will enhance the administration of football in Nigeria. It is our hope that those saddled with the responsibility of administering football in this country would harness the resources in the new edifice to improve the performance of the nation’s teams in local and international tourneys.

There is need for us to go beyond the razzmatazz that greeted the unveiling of the new secretariat. Football administrators in the country should hit the ground running and see how they would address the disrepute the bizarre 146-0 score line recorded in two amateur league matches played recently in the country has brought to our football.

Refereeing in the domestic league has been the major bane of the administration of the game in this country. Therefore, this grey area should also be addressed squarely to avoid a repeat of the show of shame in the future. Only an improved performance of Nigerian football teams in competitions would justify the huge amount spent on the new secretariat.