The Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, has declared that Nigeria Professional Football League, NPFL, club sides that have not shown proof of N200m in their bank accounts won’t be allowed to partake in the coming season.
The Minister made this known when he was speaking on the sidelines at the unveiling of Bredhub Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Centre in Abuja on Thursday.
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“Very clearly we have decided that since the Federal Executive Council has classified sports as a business, there are certain steps that must be taken to make sure the entire co-system keys into that business model.
“One of the first steps is the fact that our domestic league must run as a business and to do that you must have regulations, financial control.
“There is a new enforcement regime for our domestic league which stipulates that clubs must have a minimum of N200m in their account to show they can take care of their players.
“Every club that must play in our professional league must meet certain conditions and if they don’t meet it, they will not play.
“We are ready to go with seven or eight clubs and if they meet these conditions, they join.
“What this means is that we are putting value on our players, attracting private investments, and bringing sponsors.
“This time we are committed that this regime works for us,” he said.
Speaking further, Dare said “Al and Robotics can be applied to any aspect of human endeavour as a tool to improve the quality of life, while providing opportunities for those who have the knowledge.
“We have the aspect of digital sports that is coming up.
“Nigeria is about to plug into the esport ecosystem and we need smarter kids and youth to compete in the global digital economy,” he said.
