The Nigerian Premier League has been on break since the end of the 2011/2012 season in September, 2012. The kick off date for the 2012/2013 has been postponed on several occasions. The league doesn't have a bonafide board as at now. The last season was prosecuted without a recognised title sponsor. The sponsorship of Africa's most populous nation has been a major tussle in the past two years.
The problem started when the 2010 league board signed a contract with Total Promotions Limited(TPL.) TPL bidded for the sponsorship of the league along with Globacom limited. The latter had sponsored the league from 2003 to 2009, but they owed the league clubs about 900 million Naira ($5.6 million.)
The Nigerian Premier League (NPL) board refused to sign a new contract at the end of the 2009/2010 season. TPL and glo submitted their bids, but the former represented MTN Nigeria Limited and they offered a higher sponsorship deal. The NPL board decided to announce them as the winner of the bid. At a press conference in late 2010, the NPL announced MTN as the new title sponsor of the Nigerian League.
Globacom challenged the decision on the ground that they didn't know the true identity of whom they were contesting with. They accused MTN of gaining undue advantage over them by using TPL as their official bidding partner. Glo took the matter to a law court and the 2010/2011 season was played without a title sponsor, although some smaller organizations donated some money to the NPL board.
The NPL had leadership issues in 2010 and they failed to settle it till the end of 2012. Davidson Onwumi won the election in 2010 as the chairman of the body, but his competitors took him to court. After a power tussle that also involved the Nigerian Football Federation, Onwumi was sacked and the MTN deal was cancelled.
In 2012, Victor Baribote won a court case to remove the former chairman. The Bayelsa-born man ran what could be described as the worst league in the history of Nigerian football. Clubs were asked to pay the wages of referees. A lot of irregularities ensued as a result of the lack of a title sponsor.
At the end of the 2011/2012 season, Kano Pillars were crowned the champions of the NPL, while Enugu Rangers finished as runners-up. Three months after the completion of the league, the NPL has been dissolved. An interim board has been put in place to run the league in 2013, but they are yet o fix a commencement date.
With the razzmatazz in Nigerian football, it will be DIFFICULT for any corporate body to SPONSOR the NPL.
The problem started when the 2010 league board signed a contract with Total Promotions Limited(TPL.) TPL bidded for the sponsorship of the league along with Globacom limited. The latter had sponsored the league from 2003 to 2009, but they owed the league clubs about 900 million Naira ($5.6 million.)
The Nigerian Premier League (NPL) board refused to sign a new contract at the end of the 2009/2010 season. TPL and glo submitted their bids, but the former represented MTN Nigeria Limited and they offered a higher sponsorship deal. The NPL board decided to announce them as the winner of the bid. At a press conference in late 2010, the NPL announced MTN as the new title sponsor of the Nigerian League.
Globacom challenged the decision on the ground that they didn't know the true identity of whom they were contesting with. They accused MTN of gaining undue advantage over them by using TPL as their official bidding partner. Glo took the matter to a law court and the 2010/2011 season was played without a title sponsor, although some smaller organizations donated some money to the NPL board.
The NPL had leadership issues in 2010 and they failed to settle it till the end of 2012. Davidson Onwumi won the election in 2010 as the chairman of the body, but his competitors took him to court. After a power tussle that also involved the Nigerian Football Federation, Onwumi was sacked and the MTN deal was cancelled.
In 2012, Victor Baribote won a court case to remove the former chairman. The Bayelsa-born man ran what could be described as the worst league in the history of Nigerian football. Clubs were asked to pay the wages of referees. A lot of irregularities ensued as a result of the lack of a title sponsor.
At the end of the 2011/2012 season, Kano Pillars were crowned the champions of the NPL, while Enugu Rangers finished as runners-up. Three months after the completion of the league, the NPL has been dissolved. An interim board has been put in place to run the league in 2013, but they are yet o fix a commencement date.
With the razzmatazz in Nigerian football, it will be DIFFICULT for any corporate body to SPONSOR the NPL.
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