By Christian Emeruwa
Exactly four years ago, I came back home and met with football stakeholders, including State FA Chairmen, to discuss what I believed should be a new vision for Nigerian football.
Clubs. Government. Legislators. Investors. Coaches. Athletes. And yes, the sports media too.
We must also confront the increasing politicisation of our sporting ecosystem.
Too many sporting decisions today are subjected to political, ethnic, regional or even religious interpretations. When these considerations become more important than competence, professionalism and performance, the system inevitably suffers.
Therefore, while we clamour for a better NFF, perhaps the greater clamour should be for a better Nigerian sporting ecosystem.
Nigeria will continue to produce flashes of sporting brilliance because our talent pool is extraordinary.
But flashes of success must never be mistaken for evidence of a successful system. We should use our tongues to count our teeth. Where do our talents come from? Who identifies them? Who develops them? Where are the facilities? Where is the pathway?Where is the investment? Where is the accountability? And where is the structure connecting grassroots and school sports to state programmes, national federations, professional clubs and ultimately elite performance?
Our problem in Nigerian sports is not about leadership alone. It is systemic and structural. You cannot fix one and leave the other.
Leadership must certainly be accountable. Poor performance cannot be excused simply by blaming the system.
But equally, good people operating continuously within dysfunctional structures will eventually be constrained by those structures.
Nigeria has the talent. We have the population. We have passionate supporters. We have experienced administrators, coaches, former athletes, sports scientists, investors and professionals at home and abroad.
What we have failed to sufficiently build is the system that connects all these assets together.
Until we do, we will continue celebrating occasional victories, lamenting failures, changing personalities and repeating the same cycle.
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