Whither Nigeria Football?

Few days ago, the new Minister of Sports and Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Yusuf Suleiman, while inspecting the Abuja National Stadium, called for Football Stakeholders’ Summit to address the malaise currently gnawing at the nation’s football. It is, indeed, indicative of the poor state of affairs as evidenced by the epileptic outings of the Nigeria national teams, in recent past.

Nigeria’s Super Eagles dropped two places in the world rankings released on Wednesday by FIFA, in familiar slide down the log since February, when it suffered the biggest drop of eight places. Since January this year, Nigeria has dropped a cumulative 13 places and gained only two for a net loss of 11 places from December 2010.

Currently, the Super Eagles are ranked a distant 43rd in the world and fifth in Africa behind countries like Ivory Coast, 14th in the world, first in Africa; Egypt, 34th in the world, second in Africa; Ghana, 36th in the world, third in Africa; and Burkina Faso, 39th and fourth in the world and Africa, respectively. This is a far cry from the country’s position as the fifth best team in the world in 1994, just after its debut appearance at the Mundial.

Also, the Super Falcons, Nigeria’s women team, despite attending all the editions of FIFA Women’s World Cup since inception in 1991, are ranked 27th in the world. The team has also not been able to advance beyond the preliminary stage of any World Cup.

Disturbingly, a couple of months ago, the country’s national teams began tumbling out of even intra-continental championships Nigeria usually dominated in the past. This is, indeed, a distressful signal that should worry all keen observers.

For instance, a few days after overwhelming defeating Argentina 4-1 in a friendly in Abuja, the Super Eagles struggled to hold Ethiopia to a 2-2 draw in their last competitive outing. The result clearly jeopardised the country’s chances of qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

The Under-23 Olympic team and Super Falcons were also eliminated from the forthcoming All Africa Games’ football event by Ghana in a space of weeks.

In fact, few months after an impressive performance at the FIFA Women U-20 World Cup in Germany by the Falconets, which culminated in a final appearance, the Super Falcons, with most of the Falconets, returned to the country for the senior World Cup only to misfire and crash out at the first hurdle.

Even the nation’s club sides in continental club competitions are struggling to keep afloat. Of the three, Enyimba International, Kaduna United and Sunshine Stars, only Sunshine Stars managed to win a crucial first group stage at home while Enyimba and Kaduna United drew their respective matches.

The Tide is worried that the evanescent aura of Nigeria’s football may soon lead to the total demise of the game that had brought so much elixir and name to the country.

We are concerned because the game is dithering on the precipice and its problems seem multi-faceted. Even the managers of football have affected the game negatively.

For the most part of the life of current board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), it has been embroiled in infighting and legal battle, with some members displaying personal interests rather than moving towards corporate national goals. The ongoing identity crisis rocking the NFF or is it Nigeria Football Association (NFA), does not augur well for the health of football in the country.

We, therefore, call on the football managers and stakeholders to close ranks and save the game in Nigeria. That is why we consider the proposed stakeholder summit as timely, as it offers another opportunity at charting a new course for Nigeria’s football and make the NFF and all authorities responsible for administering the game better organised for good results.

Even so, we insist that the local leagues must be made viable to attract sponsorship, spectatorship and retain its star players, which will in turn, rob off on the national teams. Furthermore, conscious efforts must be geared towards encouraging football academics across the country, while only qualified coaches should be engaged to lead the national teams.

We believe that Nigeria, with a population of over 150 million people, has the manpower and endowment to be a major player in football in Africa and the world. It is time for the country to arrest the rot within her football, rediscover its potentials and regain her leading position in the game. That is the task before NSC, NFF and the proposed Football Stakeholders’ Summit.