The president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Gusau, has said the performances of the Super Falcons at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand have opened up new business opportunities for the federation.
He made this known yesterday during a media parley held in Abuja to mark the one-year anniversary of the present NFF board.
According to him, corporate organizations that once shied away from sponsoring women football are now ready to do business with the federation after the Super Falcons heroics at the mundial.
It will be recalled the team, despite their gallant display holding England to a barren draw after 120 minutes exited the tournament after losing 4-2 on penalties to the eventual finalists in the round of 16.
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“We thank God for the performances of the Super Falcons at the last World Cup. It has opened a lot of windows to getting some responses from a lot of corporate organisations.
“Now they see there is potential in women football and they have started listening to us to bring in more money to develop women football. That singular performance from the Super Falcons is helping us a lot. Very soon, we will see a lot of changes in women’s football,” he declared.
Speaking further, Gusau said the federation under his leadership is cutting costs in view of the prevailing economic situation in the nation.
“I was in Australia on the invitation of FIFA and I didn’t spend a dime from NFF. We are trying to cut costs for us to face the reality on ground. We try to manage the little resources we have to prepare our national teams for their various engagements.
“We are the busiest federation in Africa and I try as much as possible to ensure we achieve the core mandate of what we are expected to do,” he said.
He also vowed to put in all efforts to see the Super Eagles reclaim the AFCON trophy after 10 years and qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup while backing the Super Falcons to qualify for the 2024 Olympics.
Gusau declared that preparations were in top gear to tap into the FIFA Forward 3.0 project to build a befitting hostel for the national teams instead of paying huge bills for hotel accommodation.
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