Bet9ja Partners Nigerian Professional Football League

Duro Ikhazuagbe

As the 2021/22 Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) officially kicked off yesterday across the country, corporate bodies supporting foreign football clubs and other sporting bodies have been urged to have a rethink and channel such funds to growing domestic football in the country.

New Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the League Management Company (LMC), Davidson Owumi gave this charge in Lagos at the signing of the partnership between Nigeria’s foremost sports betting platform, Bet9ja and the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) last Thursday.

Owumi insisted that “most of these foreign clubs do not even know if these companies pumping hard-earned foreign currencies to them as sponsors exists.”

While praising Bet9ja for the bold move to identify with the country’s topflight league, the LMC’s CEO assured the sports betting company that the relationship “is going to be a mutually benefiting one for all parties involved. “No other event provides the kind of mileage the league gives. This relationship will benefit the clubs as well as help project Bet9ja to the nooks and crannies of the country and beyond.”

Earlier, Bet9ja’s Head of Marketing and Corporate Communications, Femi Osobajo, revealed why the company threw its weight behind the domestic league.

“While we are the biggest sports betting platform in Nigeria, a decent amount of activities that goes on in our platform are from foreign Football leagues.”

“The Nigerian Professional Football League needs all the support it can get, which is why we are throwing our weights behind them, and we are hopeful that this partnership would lead to more opportunities and provide a platform for the NPFL to get the kind of publicity it deserves,” he said.

As part of the partnership deal, Bet9ja was signed up as the “Official Supporter/Sponsor of the NPFL under the Betting and Gaming category.

In attendance at the brief but colourful event was the Chairman of the LMC, Mal. Shehu Dikko and NFF’s First Vice President, Seyi Akinwunmi, as well as

Head Human Resources, Bet9ja, Kikky Boboye; Head of Special Projects at LMC, Harry Iwuala,

Bukola Olopade’s Nilayo Sports Management Company brokered the partnership.