The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has called on corporate organisations in Nigeria to increase their support to the Federation to help develop football in the country.
The NFF President, Ibrahim Gusau made the call when MTN Nigeria hosted the Super Eagles on Tuesday in Abuja.
The Super Eagles finished as runners up to the host country, Ivory Coast at the just concluded 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cote d`Ivoire.
Gusau said without finance the team would not have achieved what it achieved in the tournament.
He added that for the federation to achieve more in football development, more corporate organisations should fund football development through the NFF.
“All of us here today would have loved to be celebrating here with the trophy but unfortunately God knows why. But we thank God at least as we heard from the captain this is the beginning of the new dawn as far as Nigerian football is concerned.
“I want to use this opportunity to thank MTN for their support and I hope that other corporate organisations will come up to see how they can support us the more, because without the finances, we cannot achieve what we have been able to achieve.
“So, we need more corporate organisations to come and support us so that we can continue to build on what we have so far built,” he said.
The Chairman, MTN Board of Directors, Prof. Ernest Ndukwe, said MTN was doing this as its own way of giving back to the society for all the support it has been getting all these years from Nigerians.
“This is because MTN is a sport loving organisation. Over the years, we have always wanted to support the Super Eagles in various ways. MTN is fully committed to continuing with the Super Eagles.
“We are building a nation where sports has a great role to play as a unifying force. So if we support sports, we are actually promoting unity among Nigerians,” Ndukwe emphasised.
The Assistant Captain of the Super Eagles, Troost Ekong, who spoke on behalf of the team, said this was the beginning of a new era.
“Thank you NFF, thank you MTN, thank you Nigerians, thank you our fans. We have given everything we have and have made everyone proud. But we will be better in the future, because this is not the end but the beginning of something new, and we are hoping for the best,” Troost Ekong maintained.
