‘Sports Can Fund Part Of Nigeria’s Budget’

The Executive Director of the D’elite Sports Investment Company, Mr John Tersoo, has said that Nigeria could make 40 per cent of its budget through sports, if the sector was properly managed.

In a briefing to mark the commencement of the 2013 Soccer Talent Hunt of the company in Ilorin, Tersoo noted that sports development was a good business that a country could depend on to better its socio-economic status.

Tersoo, however, blamed the poor nature of sports development in the country on the bastardisation of the system and poor management.

“We believe Nigeria is blessed with a lot of soccer talents that could be groomed to become the likes of Austin Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu and the likes.

“Nigeria can make 40 per cent of its national budget through sports, especially football, like it is being done in Brazil,” the company executive said.

He hailed the preparation of the Ilorin Centre for the trials, despite “the fact that Ilorin was not initially one of our scheduled Centres”.

He explained that the trial would be based on merit and lamented how some talented players were not given opportunity because of their poor backgrounds.

Also speaking, Sergio Daniel, the company’s Sports Director, said that the trials were meant to pick the best talents from Nigeria and link them up with various European clubs.

“We have a lot of connections, programmes and a lot of things for the kids. We wish to make a lot of Kanus, a lot of Okochas and the like from the kids,” he said.

Daniel, a Portuguese, who claimed to be a former coach with Benfica FC of Portugal, said the talent hunt was a long-term project that the company was not expecting any profit from now, but in the future.

He added that Nigeria could still make great footballers like Kanu and Okocha, if everybody was given opportunity to showcase his or her talent, without fear or favour.

He explained that they have now included Ilorin in their schedule because three talents from Ilorin were discovered at the Abuja Centre.

“Ilorin is very nice, peaceful and friendly, with a bunch of talents. Ilorin is made of good talents in football.

“In Abuja, three people from Ilorin were already picked there. So, Ilorin is believed to be a base of success,” the Sports Director said.

He, however, added that the final trial for all those selected from the various centres would hold in Abuja, where the best of the best would be selected and sponsored abroad by the company.