The Continental American Football League (CAFL) Africa is set to storm Nigeria with a new American football league, targeting 16 cities for its March 2027 launch, with Makurdi, the Benue State capital, as the starting point.
Founder and Commissioner of CAFL Africa, Muhammad El Muhammad, who disclosed this at a press conference in Makurdi on Wednesday, explained that the league would also hold in 15 other cities: Lagos, Ibadan, Ilorin, Abuja, Lafia, Lokoja, Kano, Kaduna, Jos, Enugu, Owerri, Asaba, Warri, Port Harcourt and Uyo.
El Muhammad said the organisers were already putting the necessary structures in place, adding that discussions with the Benue State Government on the league’s take-off had been concluded.
He said Benue was selected as the launch point because of its vast sporting potential and abundance of young talents.
According to him, the league would create opportunities for young people, open up employment avenues and provide a platform for identifying and developing talents in the state.
He further disclosed plans to establish an American football academy in Makurdi to scout and nurture promising talents from across Benue.
“The decision to introduce the CAFL in Benue and Nigeria at large is to bring football closer to Nigerians at home,” he said, adding that the state government had given its nod for the scheme’s take-off.
El Muhammad further stated that government’s expected support would include providing suitable playing pitches and security, without direct financial implications for the league.
He also listed sports clinics and trained sports therapists among the benefits expected from the initiative, particularly for players who sustain injuries during matches.
“Benue is a home of talents yet to be fully harnessed. We want to tap from it for the good of the people” he stated.
Also lending his voice on the initiative, Solomon Awua, Head of Marketing, Benue Television, described the initiative as a new sporting opportunity for the state.
He observed that the project had challenged the familiar pattern in which major opportunities start in Lagos and end in Abuja, urging Benue residents to seize the opportunity, just as he assured the body of media partnership to drive public awareness and support for the league.
Meanwhile, the Director of Sports, Benue State Sports Council, Iorngurum Malu, who commended CAFL for choosing Benue, said Governor Hyacinth Alia was passionate about sports and would support an enabling environment for the programme to succeed.
On their part, Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Benue State Council, Comrade Bemdoo Ugber, and Chairman of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Benue State chapter, Hembadoon Orsar, promised CAFL of media support to drive the initiative.
In a vote of thanks, Bishop Sam Praise explained that the initiative was “beyond a media show,” urging well-meaning Nigerians and organisations to support the project and ensure its success.
