Football Africa Roundup

17/08/2024

UNLOCKING NIGERIA'S FOOTBALL POTENTIAL: THE NEED FOR ACADEMY AND GRASSROOTS DEVELOPMENT

Nigeria's vast population, projected to reach 377 million by 2050, presents a unique opportunity for football development. However, despite this advantage, Nigeria lags behind in football growth and financial benefits. To bridge this gap, it's essential to prioritize and develop football academies, focusing on funding through player training fees, loans, grants, and sponsorships.

Until we establish a well-structured football system, we won't fully harness our talent pool. Other countries, like Morocco, Spain, France, England, and Argentina, have smaller populations but excel in football development.

Nigeria's government should create a conducive environment and provide support for football development, similar to other business industries. This includes:

- Encouraging private investments in football academies
- Providing infrastructure and resources for grassroots football
- Integrating football into vocational education systems

By doing so, Nigeria can:

- Discover and develop talent more efficiently
- Tap into the financial benefits of a well-structured football system
- Become a powerhouse in world football

Let's shift the focus from relying solely on government funding to creating a supportive environment for private investments and grassroots development. Together, we can unlock Nigeria's football potential and reap the rewards.

~. Dr. Joel C Abarra

16/08/2024

REVITALIZING GRASSROOT FOOTBALL IN NIGERIA: A CALL TO ACTION ~ By Joel C Abarra

Effective management of football begins with a bottom-up approach. Government and private sector investment are crucial to developing our league. This includes investing in:

- Players
- Coaches
- Incentives and benefits
- Facilities and playgrounds
- Organized tournaments

Currently, many coaches and academy owners focus on exporting young players to Europe, rather than developing their skills locally. This approach has a low success rate, with only a few players achieving their dreams.

The root cause of this issue is a lack of investment in grassroots football. Most academy players are driven by poverty, rather than a passion for the sport. To address this, we need to:

- Provide facilities and support for young players
- Involve coaches, ex-footballers, and stakeholders in grassroots development
- Partner with educators to identify and address challenges faced by young players
- Develop a structured tournament system for primary and secondary schools, U-15, and U-18 levels

By doing so, we can:

- Discover new talents
- Encourage more young players to develop their skills
- Improve the overall quality of our league

Let's work together to revitalize grassroots football in Nigeria and create a brighter future for our young players."

14/04/2023

MEET THE TEAMS FOR PORT-HARCOURT YOUNGSTARS FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP 2023 - 4

Team Name: WINNERS' FOOTBALL ACADEMY
Nickname: W.F.A
Coach: ADEBAYO KAZEEM
Chairman: EUGENE EKUEME
Base:
Year Founded: 2012

Winners' Football Academy of Port-Harcourt (formally Success Football Academy), is a grassroots academy and one of the top academies in the city of Port-Harcourt. Their evergreen record in PHC_U-16_LEAGUE from 2019 to 2023 stands out.

They have been involved in tournaments in Port-Harcourt, Osun State, Ondo state, and at several other state tournaments.

They have been involved in Ysfon Rivers state branch tournaments since 2013. Their training base at BORI CAMP PH BARRACKS, is a grooming ground for great stars under the hands of Coach Adebayo Kazeem.

Winners Football Academy is coming for the PH Youngstars Football Championship (2nd Edition) with a vision to build on what they have achieved for the past season. They believe that they will have a successful shot at being the Champions this year.

We wish them well at the 2023 tournament.

04/04/2023

(SoS)

:
*Understanding The Three-Thirds Of The Pitch*

Knowing the risk level and advantages of each third of the pitch will help you manage the risk factor and leverage advantages effectively.

*The First Third*
In the first third of the pitch, that's where your goals are, it's a low-risk zone. In this third, you don't attempt complicated actions. Here is the build-up zone and you keep your game as simple as possible. Receive, protect, and pass.
Here you Pressure, Cover and Balance. It's your defensive third

*The Second Third*
In the second third of the pitch, that's the middle of the field. In this zone you consolidate, that is, look for spaces and movement from your teammates that will advance the ball into the final third. In this zone, you can take minimum and moderate risks as you attempt to break the lines. Here you control through passes flow and create opportunities. It's called the Midfield Third.

*The Final Third*
The final third, that's the zone closer to the opponent's goals, which is also known as the finishing zone. Here you can take risks and complicated actions with the aim of scoring. But as you take risks, remember to be clinical and not wasteful. Decision-making in the final third is essential; don't shoot when passing is the best option, and likewise, don't pass when shooting is the best option.
This is the attacking third and here, we only aim to score

24/03/2023

13/03/2023

Zionhill United Football Club, Port Harcourt is launching out for the year 2023.
Our players development and enhancement programmes continue with the following:
• Rivers State FA Super League
• PH U-16 Football League
• Port-Harcourt Youngstars Football Championship
• Southern Nigeria Grassroots Football League (SNGFL)

For details and registration, get in touch through this WhatsApp link 👉 https://wa.link/fgmw8o
OR call 0915 098 8547

Zionhill United FC - raising soccer stars!

👌

#

25/02/2023

NEW UPDATE...
Due to the general elections spanning two weeks, our one week Pre-season Camp/Tour to Bayelsa has been rescheduled to
Mon 27th - Sat 1st Apr.
Don't be left behind. Get ready!!!

Zionhill United Football Club, Port Harcourt is a launching ground for talented footballers who are ready to showcase their trade to the world.

For details and registration, get in touch through this WhatsApp link 👉 https://wa.link/fgmw8o
OR call 0915 098 8547

Zionhill United FC - raising soccer stars!

👌

#

11/01/2023

Follow this link to join the WhatsApp group for the Independent Grassroots Sports Development Association (IGSDA) - Rivers Chapter and by extension, the South-South: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KFSlHZ6XmeA6vmHiWoS1da

07/01/2023

This is former nigeria goalkeeper Peter Fregene, otherwise known as Flyíng cat back in the 70s, he is dyíng in abject póverty while Brazil celebrated Pele till dèath. It surprises me to see the likes of Kanu, Okocha celebrating Pele while this man is dyíng as a commóner! Please, share until it gets to NFF 💔 It saddens to know that lot of our heroes are not treated well in this part of the world 🌍. We need to do better💔💔💔