The former chairman of Gombe State Football Association, Ahmed Shuaibu Gara-Gombe, has described the NI.06 billion broadcast deal between the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) and a pay television service provider, StarTimes, as a slap on Nigeria’s face, saying selling the country’s elite football league for peanuts is unacceptable.
The president of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Musa Gusau and NPFL chairman, Hon Gbenga Elegbeleye, on Thursday in Abuja signed N1.06 billion five-year broadcast rights deal with the management of StarTimes, with an increment of N50 Million for every subsequent seasons.
But, Gara-Gombe, who spoke to LEADERSHIP Sports on Monday, described the deal as a big insult to Nigerians and football stakeholders in the country.
He said many companies were willing to offer a far bigger deal had Elegbeleye-led Nigeria Premier Football League Limited make it open and allow due process to prevail in awarding the contract.
“Nobody is saying they shouldn’t sign a sponsorship contract, but why tidy the league down for five years and where do people who have better offers stand?
“The process of awarding the TV rights to StarTime was not transparent, the bidding process was not opened to the public for other companies to apply or express their interest, they didn’t advertise it anywhere. They were doing it on their own for six months before they went on to take the N1.06billion peanuts in desperation.
“They have been running this league by cut and paste and if you say you’re looking for a sustainable way of funding the league through sponsorship, why don’t you make it open for everyone to bid for it. You can’t just go for peanuts simply because you’re desperately looking for funds, it is unacceptable.
“As far as we are concerned, selling the TV rights of our league for N1.06billion is total rubbish and we won’t take such rubbish from anyone,” Gara-Gombe declared.
He continued: “Look at what happened in Gombe on Sunday, the local derby between Doma and Gombe United, they were more 20 thousand people in the stadium, then you go to Aba, Kano, Jos, Bauchi, Maiduguri, Katsina, Ibadan, Lagos and so on, so you can imagine the aggregate viewership and they (Startime) said they will be showing us two matches per week, what kind of insult is that?
“I have people with the technology that can give Nigerians all the matches played simultaneously on television and you choose the one you want to watch. We have the equipment and technology to do it. Even if we don’t get it, let people with better offers have it.”
The erstwhile secretary general of the defunct Nigeria Football Stakeholders Forum (NFSF) also highlighted what a good deal will do for the NPFL and Nigerian football in general. “Those who are supposed to be aware of the 11m US Dollars project were duly informed, They withheld the offer for 11 days only to come out and announce an embarrassing N1.06b a Year deal, as if Nigerians don’t really know what you are doing, but it will not work because is against Nigeria’s interest.”
NFF President Ibrahim Gusau, who led members of the NPFL board to the signing on Thursday in Abuja, said the broadcast deal was aimed at driving the interest of football fans in the country over foreign football leagues like the English Premier League (EPL).
“We thank God for making this day a reality. It has been our dream and earnest desire to do everything it takes to improve our domestic league,” he said.