Pascalberry:
Niqeria qat a few quality stadium but only 1 iz qualified tew host 1. . .imagine! But i believe that if nigeria is given the chance to host world cup. .4years is enough to build quality and standard stadiums.

Old thread, but came to this after watching the game in Uyo and wondering whether or not anything else was in the process of development. Need more than stadiums to host a WC. Infrastructure projects will be required. Mass transit light-rail will definitely be required across the entire country.

Maybe when the league is fully privatized or sold publicly like in Germany these things will develop.

As Nigeria's ambition grows, it's footprint on the global sports world must grow as well. Nigeria's most notable sports are football, other aspects of football like beach football, track and field, and basketball. Naija has begun to branch out into polo, rugby and others. But with the number of Nigerian engineers who work in the UK and the US, if Nigeria was able to upgrade it's domestic technological base, and revamp it's auto industry, then I could imagine that Formula one would follow.

Late last year, a Nigerian made a breakthrough in a 24 hour race in Belgium.
http://pulse.ng/sports/other_sports/shahin-nouri-nigerian-makes-history-in-motorsport-id5437500.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5jWKmLyBEY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBiA2ndCOZk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_L5JgajyMAM

Perhaps it shouldn't be a surprise that it was a Nigerian of Lebanese decent as native Nigerians have only recently begun to show more interest in motorsports. I'm happy to see anyone who proudly flies the flag succeed, but more effort would have to follow to truly become engaged in a sport in whose participation, technological skills could be enhanced and lead to a wholey domestic automotive industry on the cutting-edge of technology. But this is years away.

The initial plans of the Centenary City outside of Abuja did have plans for an F1 track with the goal of perhaps attracting the sport to Nigeria to bring it back to the continent for the first time since the sport left South Africa. With the dominance of Lewis Hamilton on close showcase for a Nigerian public, black interest in the sport could rise. Interest in domestic automotive engineering could rise with the best Nigerian minds keying up with ideas to improve things like fuel efficiency and safety. Domestic manufacturers might begin to rise to join Innosen.

Nigerians in Abuja might also stop driving on the streets of Abuja and take their action to the track...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dalLJTVKm7w

Ovie Iroro is another possibility.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocTYn7o5GTQ
He was raised in the UK so has the advantages of growing up with their facilities and mindset (racing is important to the British even without any major auto manufacturers involved), but does not get any backing due to lacking interest in Nigeria. No Nigerian or UK corporation will sponsor him. Shahin Nouri, being a dual-nationality racer, has an advantage with both the Lebenese, Swiss and Nigerian markets being open to him. Unlike Iroro, he doesn't have to compete in one of them with a hoard of more established names. Who knows what will happen in the future. I don't know if F1 in Nigeria could benefit Nigeria in the way that I imagine. Just having the sport doesn't mean that Nigerian-made supercars or high-efficiency vehicles will follow. But it's something to think about.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/nigerias-friendly-monday-cancelled-seven-10103221
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/03/burkina-faso-nigeria-friendly-cancelled-uk-visas-170326075911828.html
http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/39393843

...well sh**. So much for preparation. Who's idea was it to schedule all of these friendlies in England anyway without preparing visas ahead of time? Nigeria's last prep match for Cameroon is now a AfCoN qualifier that they can scarcely afford to experiment in unless they get a big lead early...

TheSuperNerd:
I agree that of all the goalkeeping options we have in Ikeme's absence outside Akpeyi and Ezenwa.... Emma Daniel tops based on his experience with the U-23 side at 2015's U-23 Afcon and the Rio 2016 Olympics.


But the problem is this.... Rohr won't give Daniel or any new good Goalie their debut in a crucial World Cup qualifier except that goalie is Neuer himself or Buffon. It will be so difficult to see Rohr make such a decision. In fact, almost impossible....


Ofcos Ezenwa isn't the best in The NPFL... and Akpeyi doesn't inspire much confidence but Akpeyi especially has caps...... and have manned the post in two competitive games already (one under Siasia and one under Rohr)..... do you see Rohr giving a debut to a goalie in the games against Cameroon?

The efforts are surely being made; had Enyeama been able to be convinced to returned, then between Iheme and him, Naija would have a more than serviceable pair of keepers barring the extreme unlikelihood of losing both within a single competition. As it stands, without Iheme, Nigeria is greatly exposed and risks defeat every time they chose not to protect their keeper's shortcomings. That said, Akpeyi's biggest flaws were his ball distribution and handling. He made some serviceable saves though. His handling skilled can be carefully managed with specific instructions on how he should manage the game. Or perhaps a single one; punt long every time...

Perhaps, had Nigeria been able to participate in the AfCoN with a strong showing, then the space could be made in these friendlies to explore goalkeeping options, but Rohr is in a tough position here. With Cameroon's AfCoN win, it becomes important for Rohr to re-establish some momentum going into the Cameroon matchup. That means at least going unbeaten until that pair of matches. Experimentation now, could sap all the mental advantages of late last year, he could begin to lose the cohesiveness he enjoyed with the squad and they could revolt and stop playing for him. So he has less incentive to play a new keeper when the one he has been playing has a win under his belt already. Burkina Faso could be the matchup to try a new keeper, being not on the level of Senegal though.

The OP could have used more divers examples to make a point. To refocus, it's more accurate to say that all of Nigeria's government officials are paid far too much relative to overall economic conditions. It's even more out of line than it is in the US. This is something that should be addressed. Ben Murray Bruce made this point awhile back. Nigeria should make this mandatory to tie government salaries directly to a much smaller percent of the national reserves of the previous year. If a civil servants can grow their economy, then their salaries can grow. That's incentive. The country does not incentivize the governors, president, etc to do better.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dE7W1x3xa8

Today's UK military is not what it was during the imperial days and Nigeria's population is far larger than it was even a half century ago. So I doubt it would even be worthwhile to even make the effort. They would likely bankrupt themselves trying to invade Ireland, let alone Nigeria; half a world away and with several times the population. Sure they could use nukes to level the country, but to what end? Their own, probably, after they receive so many sanctions and threats from former allies just for using them? Because that's the only war that they win with almost anyone these days. They are no longer a military power...

The ability to project power is far more technical these days and requires massive spending in floating naval launchpoints (carriers), military appropriation of overseas bases of operation, and technical superiority that negates manpower advantages. And even with all three of these in spades, the US still struggled with troop losses in a nation as sparsely populated and technology-lacking as Afghanistan. The US has 19 active aircraft carriers. The next two countries on that list are Japan and France with 4 each. Italy, Egypt and Australia each have 2. China has 2 if you include the first that they built that isn't actually serviceable (they're working on their true second) and the UK (Russia as well) has one. This is where the shift of the balance of world affairs has gone. Germany, who leads all EU economies and currently overwhelms it's political affairs,... doesn't even have one and has no plans to re-mobilize militarily.

It's all about economics these days; military action is kept light and targeted towards relatively micro-scale operations with controllable outcomes, the likes of which might have some immediate economic or political objective. Trying to build empires are the ambitions of days past. If you do not have a giant continent-straddling nation today, then you will likely never have one in the future unless countries begin to voluntarily decide to unify into socio-economic entities such as the EU in order to achieve some global scale of political influence and economic ambition (Germany). East African nations have talked of this possibility.

Russia still maintains the manpower and a remaining base of military hardware from the Soviet days to dominate their region, but has yet to try projecting beyond Eastern Europe due to lack of ability. Their current military actions have been on this type of scale and has not ranged beyond their immediate border neighbors. What they are doing is trying to build alliances from among the world's growing and perhaps developing future powers and nations that have been traditionally marginalized by the West. In doing so, they feel that they might position themselves as potential leaders in a political block of anti-Western powers in the future. This strategy is one that addresses the current manner in which geo-politics has evolved. It's more about trade (mostly unequal and as unfavorable as possible to your partners), politics, "justifiable" small-scale military actions that meed immediate economic goals (the benefits have to pay for the cost of invasion) and positioning in global affairs.

A UK invasion of Nigeria would not meet any of these and would likely end up in the break-up of the UK completely after the inevitable economic ruin that comes from it. They would not be able to control the oil since they would likely have destroyed the industry during the ruinous war that it would take even in the event that they win. They scale of war and numbers of ground troops that they would need to try would, in relative terms, be the biggest that they've taken since the war with South African Boers, and in absolute numbers greater than any that they've ever deployed in their history. The initial losses alone would be devastating, since this is the 21st century and everyone has assault rifles and tanks and aircraft. Theirs might be newer, but there would be fewer of them on the ground and Nigeria would have the advantage of terrain and manpower. Nigeria's various ethnic factions would likely be unified for the first time since independence as well. No, despite what many Europeans and Westerners would say, it would not be so easy to colonize Africa today, especially one as large as Nigeria, despite it's problems. The US could, because they're probably the only country that still invests heavily in the means to deploy forces effectively around the world, but not without extreme difficulty and cost, and the returns would not justify the effort.

China's next phase of development does include plans to massively scale up their military including the development of aircraft carriers and overseas military bases. But this is a slow process that takes many years to do. Even if the UK decided to do it today, it would require a level of military investment that would deplete the social programs which many of them take for granted. The US' massive military budget is part of the reason that it's spending in other areas is constantly under threat.

mmsen:


Where did you get the impression that the OP is saying that there are not 10 developed LGAs outside of Lagos when Abuja, Bonny Island, Calabar municipality and Uyo municipality are all on the list?

And for the record they are all far more habitable than anywhere in Lagos besides Lekki.

My point is more about perception than anything. These places are developed but not to massive scales. They don't link up with anywhere else in a major way as well. They're maybe a decade away from becoming true regional hubs that are can't-miss investor destinations. For them to be that, they have to have money not only in their own sector, but industrial output that spills over into other regions of the country. That is what is being built in some areas, but they weren't originally big cities to begin with. The work that's being done in Uyo is commendable, but had that type of vision been applied to what already exists in, say, Port Harcourt, then that city would be one of Nigeria's 3 prime investor destinations and would push Lagos financially for superiority.

I agree with many of the comments calling for federalism. I think that economics work best on a micro scale. I would even take it further and call for local municipalities to be set up into a functioning local governmental entity. For most foreigners reading about Fashola and Lagos, many would have thought of him as the mayor of the city of Lagos rather than the governor of Lagos state. It puts an additional strain on manpower focus to ask governors, even without judging their individual intent or ability, to also focus on what should be the job of a functioning municipal government with it's own police force, sanitation, and health services. But creating a third level of government in Naija could also lead to a third tier of government in which funds can disappear. But at least at this level, the focus on the actions of government can be more closely watched. In most nations, it is very easy to attend a city council meeting or involve oneself directly in the manner that your city decides on projects. But at the state/provincial level it is harder and nearly impossible at the national level. Nigeria's lack of municipal accountability hurts the country imo. Federalism is a good start, but setting up municipal oversight is the next step. This is the reason that many of these privately funded city projects want absolute control. Because, while they also stand to profit, they also know that they can govern a city of any size much better than a state government anywhere can. That should not be their job even if they were perfectly competent and honest.

Edit: I seem to be quoted a number of times, but where did my original post go?

gazmann:
Thank God for kelechis goals. It has somewhat covered up for him. His link up play and his on the ball control needs some polishing. If his movement as silky as iwobi who has scored less goals in arsenal. He will be indispensable to pep. I hope he ups his overall attacking strenght

Iheanacho has good movement off the ball. If you look at his runs, he times them well and moves well into spaces behind defenders. He even often makes the pass thinking a few plays ahead to how the potential teammate will set him up for goal and immediately starts making that run. That's football IQ. He has that, and he mostly is a good passer of the ball. He just doesn't have the overall playmaking ability and that's what Pep values, players who can create off the dribble and one-touch pass without a break for long periods of time. He's not that type of players and hasn't been set up to be since his time at City. Moving now would help, but where he moves will determine how he develops. If he goes to a mid-table EPL team, then he's done. He'll be a target striker forever. If he wants to develop into a more complete player, then Spain or Germany is best. Even Italy would be better. Or perhaps Arsenal...

cstr55:
I have never fancied mancity as a club for him. The club is too plastic and need success as quickly as possible to justify their enormous spending.
Iheanacho needs a club like [b]Borrusia Dortmund [/b]or [b]Arsenal. There, He is going to learn the technical aspects of the game at his own pace and become the great footballing maestro he has the talent to become.[/b]

Bingo. Those are the two best clubs in Europe for young players, Borussia being superior since Arsenal's youth strategy has always been in danger of not outlasting Arsene Wenger.

For Iheanacho, imo, his biggest weakness since arriving at the first team seemed to be his dribbling and first touch. He seemed to have lost confidence in both completely when he was doing both rather comfortably at the City 2 squad and U17. His first touch especially is telling and informs his dribbling struggles. If it were merely higher levels of competition, then his dribbling might go down but his first touch should still remain about the same when he is unmanned. It seems to me that he initially ran into trouble showing close control around defenders and lost all confidence in his ability to control the ball under any situation.

To me this is the biggest reason that he is struggling to impress Pep. Guardiola likes creativity across the pitch bc that's what he had in both Barca and Bayern. Technical ability is not the strongest part of the English game which is why I always bemoan the fact that Nigerians seem drawn to that league moreso than Germany or Spain. If you look at English footballers, only the elite can be considered to have deft touch and above average dribbling skills and none have been elite dribblers in recent memory. This is Pep's biggest issue with City as a whole. I don't think he's as great a manager as he's called out to be; he didn't create the system used at Barca and Bayern has won the Champions League the year before he arrived and none since. But he's used to a certain caliber of player who can create out of dire situations by holding and dribbling out of danger. Iheanacho had flashes of that ability but noone to teach him how to hone it. They developed him as an out and out striker and he lost that aspect of his game, perhaps forever...

If you look at what BVB has done with Dembele and Pulisic, they did not try to breed the creativity and expressiveness out of their games merely to fill a role. I'm not saying that Iheanacho ever had the natural dribbling skills as those two or even Iwobi, but he would have been put in a position there to use it to the best of his ability and become the best player that he could potentially have been. Now, I'm not so sure that this can happen. I don't know why African players can't get on at German clubs; is it a matter of not trying or no interest there? Isaac Success' ventures in Spain has potentially made him a better player than he would have been coming straight to England. Imo, his potential may not have been the same as what Iheanacho's was, but he has just about caught up to him.

Perhaps having a German coach for the national team could change this and Nigerian academies can gain connections to the Bundesliga pipeline, but Nigerian's themselves may not see this as profitable. Most Nigerians watch and have access to EPL matches. Those matches make more money in Nigeria, so clubs from England know that they can buy Nigerians and sell their merch whether or not they play them or properly develop them. There is no such incentive outside of England so their up-front offers will never match England's for Nigerian players. So it becomes a question of whether the player himself will [i](or can) [/i]make a decision for his own future or go along with the plan.

GHKWAME:

I am sorry to say this but its managed/supervised by the Whites, the same Whites that destroyed SA's nuclear arsenals on the eve of the Blacks taking over P0wer!

As long as South Africa continues to have nuclear power plants, then they still have the ability to very easily regain nuclear weapons because every plant processes plutonium as waste which can very easily be converted into weapons with little technical expertise or assistance. This is why the US was so up in arms with Iran starting nuclear power plants, not that they aren't being hypocrites. So regardless of the West disarming SA, they have only taken the developed arsenal, but they did not take the technology that could be used to develop more. Still, I doubt that the West would be happy if SA decided to develop arms under black rulers, but they'd be hard-pressed to find a justifiable excuse to invade over it. There's no terrorism in SA, there's no political interest for the West to oppose it outside of NATO treaties which SA ignored when they developed arms in the first place. Then again, noone seemed to care until the old government gave power to the ANC.

That said, nuclear energy is very efficient. It creates a lot of energy for a smaller required input. It just needs a very high level of maintenance and technical know-how. Naija currently has no experience with the materials and the technical workings to use it, so it's fine to have Russian advisers overseeing the project so long as they are simultaneously training Nigerians to properly manage it in the future and are not hampering Nigeria's ability to fully control it's uses. That means that they do not sabotage the project for fear of Nigeria using the waste products for a nuclear arsenal in the future. Bottom line, once a nation has the capacity to maintain nuclear energy, they simultaneously become a potential nuclear-armed power. All the Nigerian government will then have to do is create warheads from the plutonium waste, which is easier than maintaining the energy plant. And, of course, explain to the UN why they had to do so in order to stave off an invasion by outside forces...

Could this put a target on our backs? For one thing, who knows how long Western powers will wait before deciding that Nigerian oil needs taking by force? We've never been a particular target because we have very little control over our oil revenue as it is. Nuclear energy will lighten the lead that Nigeria needs from oil for energy generation, but petroleum will still be an issue until Nigeria has refineries. With refineries online, Nigeria will not only be able to produce value-added petrol products for itself, it can also better control the prices that they can demand for those products, which may not make the West happy and with a potential nuclear arsenal (and Boko Haram) there may be a story to be told for a potential armed conflict. I don't think there is any current over-arching public support for war in any Western nation now, but in 10 years...

These are all concerns outside of the obvious "accident" or nuclear meltdown at the plant itself. Fukushima, was not the fault of the Japanese, but rather a natural disaster which is unlikely to affect Nigeria since Naija does not sit on a fault-line. The Japanese technical skill and efficient design parameters would likely have kept the station running without issue indefinitely barring an uncontrollable disaster. Even now, they will likely be re-outfitting existing plants to withstand higher stresses placed under disaster conditions. But we are not purchasing the capacity from the Japanese, we are purchasing from the Russians and with it, the technology that caused Chernobyl. That disaster was entirely user-error from the outset. Lack of planning for routine stress tests, coupled with inherent flaws in design led to that issue. We can only hope that they have learned from it and improved, but with Russians,... who knows. They value overall output over caution and they're not usually quite as efficient as Japan even without that mindset.

Then you have to go back to waste. Barring the development of a vast nuclear arsenal, there's literally nothing that can be done with plutonium except to store it. It cannot be broken down or destroyed, it can't be buried underground unless you want radioactive drinking water, it degrades on the time-scale of millennia. The only feasible waste disposal means that anyone has devised is to take it out to space and try to shoot it into the sun and let it burn up there, and the calculations necessary to do that without missing are so precise that it's currently impossible to guarantee with any certainty. We could shoot and miss only for it to hit us when the earth gets to the other side possibly. So any nuclear waste would have to be stored and that requires trust that the government will actually do this properly and maintain the waste in such a manner that it would not end up being found buried next to a small village or under a city lot ten years after hundreds of people mysteriously contracted and died of cancer. Trust and competence is the biggest issue, and as long as Naija continues to elect the type of leaders that it does (granted the parties only nominate puppets and figureheads rather than the most intelligent Nigerians, so this is their fault) then...

I think he's trying to say that there aren't 10 developed local areas or even one outside of Lagos. Debatable, however it bothers me that almost all current investment, including private investment, is directed towards Lagos when the country needs more regional economic hubs. Part of the reason that Lagos is overrun and overpopulated is this mentality. If more investment could be directed towards Aba, Port Harcourt, Kaduna, Maiduguri, Jos, Ibadan etc you would see more growth across the country and fewer people running to one single city. Some of this is out of anyone's hands since you cannot force private investors to go where they don't see a return on investment. But you can invest government funds in different regions in order to make those regions more attractive so that the private sector can finish the job. Look at what China did by with their regional economic zones. It could be said that there were only three economic hubs in that country twenty years ago and two of them weren't even technically part of China. Now Hong Kong will have to soon fight just to remain among China's top ten investment destinations. I like the project in Eko Atlantic, for example, but a similar project elsewhere would help Nigeria more.

At any rate, I'm glad that the OP is proud of his state, but how about wishing for the country's growth, the uplifting of a nation that can be an example for all of Africa. It would not only aid Nigeria, but ease the congestion in Lagos as well.

Obi Mikel and likely Moses will be out for the friendlies. Nigeria cannot afford to not have Success for a potential boost.

Is Success confirmed to join the team?

Icon4s:


Rorh should leave this guy out for now. Let him settle-down professionally first.

What's the status on Isaac Success? We've yet to see him suit up for Nigeria since qualifying began.

This is a big match for Nigeria. After Cameroon's unexpected result in the AfCoN, they well be coming back to qualifying with a high level of confidence. Winning our next two friendlies could help Naija match that confidence against sides who are of similar style and possibly a higher level of talent than Cameroon. Yes, Cameroon beat Senegal, but Senegal was and is still the more highly-regarded side atm. Plus, a convincing win on neutral ground against both teams would be of a similar equivalent to Cameroon's work in the tournament and reverse the confidence factor back to our favor. Poor showings in London, however, could plant a seed of doubt in the minds of the players and begin to create friction in a squad that has so far been cohesive and playing for the manager and one another. Players like Musa have been content to come off the bench but will likely only do so as long as the team continues to win.

Rohr has stayed busy and has been scouring the market for defensive help as depth at the back has been sorely lacking. A backup keeper to Iheme could be crucial as well. We covered his loss well against Algeria; Akpeyi wasn't totally bad and defended shots well, but his decision-making and distribution was lacking. This could be improved with coaching, but I'd be more comfortable with another option. A shame that Enyeama has ruled out playing unless the team qualifies, and if it comes to that, then he doesn't deserve a spot on the team at all since such Ikeme is serviceable when he's playing and we don't need someone who isn't invested fully into the project. Sure, Enyeama had legit gripes, but there is a new manager and young players who could have used his leadership. Credit to Mikel for sticking it out.

Very excited and apprehensive at the same time. This could make or break our qualifying campaign before it even resumes. Plus there's an AfCoN qualifier mixed in which will also serve as yet another warm-up for WC qualifying. Very important to win all three matches or at least come away with two wins and a draw.

I'm convinced that Suarez drinks his own urine...

What happened to the Youtube channel? I was so happy to see the improved conditions, production and crowds out of the league as well as the channel itself showcasing games for the entire season and now,... nothing. A few videos this year but no games. What's going on? It was a good idea which I had called for in my above post (and they apparently had already been doing) but no follow-up so far...

Youtube is a potential revenue source if you can grow the channel and it takes years to do so. Here in the US, MLS' channel started with similar viewcounts and now averages 25k per highlight and up to several hundred thousand for big matches and one-off displays. They stuck with the channel and it grew. Same with J-league. Nigeria's league needed this channel, especially to promote the product to the diaspora who could pump potentially even more money into the league. Plus, look at how many views Nigerian music videos get these days. That's money right there. And it isn't expensive to upload videos,... it's free. They're already recording the matches, so why isn't someone up on this season? Disappointing to see a good idea go to waste...

RIP to those boys. You can raise that trophy now...

Zambia has been very mediocre all year. You have to respect your opponents, but you must also take opportunities and Algeria (and Cameroon too) will not struggle against Zambia. Nigeria has struggled to score but they have defended well overall and haven't played their best players in my opinion (Iwobi & Iheanacho) nearly enough. We have yet to see those two on the pitch together in green and I feel that we're in for a treat if they manage to click right away. Both are in-form and extremely talented. This game will be very telling for how the qualifying campaign will go. If Iwobi and Iheanacho show the ability to unlock and take apart the Chipolopolo defense, Musa can recover his form and Ideye can contribute a little, Nigeria could be ready to surprise which puts them in good position for Algeria.

1. Streaming and television options have to be improved. Coupled with that is a need for improved picture quality. Not necessarily HD, but certainly digital and that goes above the level of the league itself. Investment in quality commentators who can explain the game and highlight prospects will be important. A high-quality Youtube channel with extensive highlights would allow both Nigerians in Nigeria and ex-pats in the diaspora to follow the progress of the league.

2. Better stadiums. One positive development to this end is the fact that Akwa United has been playing matches in the Akwa International Stadium, turning a potential white elephant into a potential asset for growth and a source of pride for a club with new potential. More work needs to go into either renovating older assets or building new stadiums with both economic and aesthetic concerns taken into account. A good look needs to be taken at TP Mazembe's stadium, as it's a very economical stadium, with a smart design and a cozy, football-only interior which allows their fans to be very close to the pitch. It's constantly full and brings money back into the club.

3. The previous point dovetails into this next point: run clubs like businesses and not extensions of state governments. When clubs are being run as money-making enterprises, investments are made to improve the quality of the overall business. That means coaching, stadium and pitch quality, fan experience, advertising and exposure, and overall profile of the league. This requires the league to recruit businessmen into the league's ownerships. In the US, MLS has been active in recruiting wealthy investment groups to carry much of the heavy-lifting. These men and women have built stadiums, bought well-known stars from other leagues and introduced practices from varying industries to grow the product. Businessmen with experience in the NFL have brought their practices in promotion and improving attendance as well as negotiating tv deals; owners from other leagues, like the EPL, bring their management style and team development ideas; and owners from other industries bring business ideas on how to run profitable enterprises. Nigeria has many successful and wealthy individuals, like Mike Adenuga, the Chagoury Brothers, Folorunsho Alakija, Aliko Dangote and others who's money could be well spent in the NPL. Why they aren't already in the league is a major failing.

4. And finally, position the league as "Africa's Premier League". Doing these three things would be an important start to gaining traction, both in Nigeria and across Africa. Making a successful and profitable NPL could position the league as the go-to destination of Africa. Already Nigeria's music and movie industries are at the forefront all over much of Africa. Even in South Africa, Nigerian music is extremely prominent. A strong league in Nigeria would not only attract talented players form across the continent, it would also attract money and viewership as well. Days when West African Players who either will not or can not find a club in Europe look to North Africa for bigger paychecks should be a thing of the past. Nigerian players should also have home league to develop before going abroad much as Neymar was able to do before signing with Barca.

QuiverBox:


See how an online poll has made all of you apprehensive, hope you guys will have the sufficient blood pressure that will sustain you when GEJ is declared Winner?

I don't know who's going to in and I live in the US, but that poll is as fake as a Hampton's boob job. One thing to note, no US or UK firm (whether legal, accounting, or consulting) would be listed with the first names of it's partners.

Ngwakwe:
It was the most foolish decision Nigeria ever made to reject Africom.

See Japan, South Korea, Germany, Britain, Israel, Gulf States and many prosperous countries. All have US military presence in their soil.

Investments, technological tranfer, developments and tourism go where US military installations are found.

Perhaps. The question is whether AFRICOM would treat Nigeria with the same equanimity that US foreign intallations operate with in those nations. Rejecting AFRICOM was done with the intent of ensuring Nigeria's sovereignty. Did the US see it that simply? Would it be a partnership or hegemony?

galilaeo:
Honestly, anyone who believes this article is a fool. *NG* isn't important enough to even give a second glance. It's a third world country full of corrupt, narcissists; who evidently think Naija is the giant of Africa. You people are delusional and need to pull your head out of your asses.

...so colonialism was just a waste of time...

Natalie.