After 17 years of meritorious service to Nigeria football, nine of these years as general secretary, Dr. Mohamed Sanusi is expected to bow out of office as the Chief Executive Officer of the country’s football ruling body, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) come January 1st 2025.
Hate him or love him, Dr. Sanusi will by January 1, 2025 bow out at the expiration of his contract as Nigeria’s longest serving general secretary and you may add as the highest paid in the history of NFF/ NFA. Under his watch as the GS, he boasts of several ups and downs from March 2015 till date. Before then, he had been Assistant general secretary in charge of competitions in 2007 later as Director of competitions before his appointment as the general secretary.
He is responsible for the Federations’ day-to-day operations, including organizing competitions, coordinating with national teams, and fostering youth development programmes. His leadership as Chief Operating Officer (CEO) is also vital in managing Nigeria’s participation in international tournaments and addressing issues within Nigerian football
Sanusi can beat his chest and say that his efforts to enhance transparency, players’ welfare and development of men and women football under his tenure have yielded more positives than negatives. Our national teams have progressed while the domestic football has also witnessed tremendous success.
What has a beginning must have an end and so, Dr. Sanusi has to say goodbye to the steep chair even though it was reported that he is mounting serious pressure to get extension of his contract for another three years. But his chances are very slim as that position has been earmarked for a section of the country. So, it will benefit Sanusi to quit the federation when the ovation is still high.
WHO SUCCEEDS SANUSI? IKPEME, OGUNOWO OR OLAJIRE
Ordinarily, Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme who is Sanusi’s deputy should have been a natural successor but he is knocked out by the decision to zone the post of general secretary to a section of the country where he doesn’t come from. He may serve in the interim after the exit of Sanusi since his contract was renewed last year till 2026. He may choose to continue as deputy general secretary and continue to double as Super Eagles psychologist till his contract expires or terminate or get the contract terminated.
ADEMOLA OLAJIRE, the Director of Communications with the NFF is also interested in being the next GS being one of the top directors in the Federation. A mass communication PhD. holder from the famous University of Lagos who plays vital role in managing and laundering the public image of Nigerian football. He is also responsible for coordinating NFF’s media and communications.
Blessed with strategic communication skills and experience within sports administration, helping to bridge the Federation’s relationship with the media, sponsors and stakeholders. The only encumbrance that might deny Dr. Ademola Olajire from becoming the next General Secretary is the fact that he is not a certified sports administrator. He is reported to have read Mass communication from first degree to Doctorate level.
SHOLA OGUNOWO, a certified sports administrator looks the most qualified and the chosen one to succeed Dr Mohamed Sanusi as the general secretary. He is a Deputy Director Sports with the NFF and presently the Chief Operating Officer of Nigeria’s third tier league, Nationwide League One (NLO)
A graduate of Sports Science (BSc.), Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) and a Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from University of Abuja with a doctorate degree in sports management from the Lagos State University (LASU) in view, Ogunowo joined NFF as a sports officer in the year 2000 and rose through the ranks to become a deputy director sports and chief operating officer CEO of NLO.
Ogunowo, who hails from from Sagamu in Ogun State, South West Nigeria has worked through all the three tiers of the Nigerian leagues as well as the women league. He was team administrator of the Super Falcons for the Beijing Olympic Games aside from being a protocol officer and personal assistant to the then general secretary, Late Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi. He has worked in almost all the departments of NFF.
Under his leadership as COO, the NLO has expanded its focus on both quality and accessibility. The league has introduced measures to improve match day standards, combat hooliganism and enhance engagement. Ogunowo aims to bring grassroots football system in Nigeria to international standards by incorporating best practices as observed globally.
In the area of sponsorship and partnership, Ogunowo has been amazing in attracting clients of various pedigrees to boost grassroots football. His work with foreign corporate sponsors has led to significant partnership that provide technical, financial, and visibility support for the league with Sofascore, a sport tracking company that enhances NLO’s reach by sharing match data with a global audience.
So impressed with the work Ogunowo has done, the NFF President Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau urge one of the leagues to emulate him by using the template of the NLO. Many watchers of the game viewed such comments as an endorsement of the ebony hued football administrator’s capabilities and good to move up to occupy the office to be vacated by Dr Sanusi soon.
Ogunowo was able to net NLO’s biggest sponsorship package with New Year Mega Lottery doling s whopping ₦960 for the third tier league. Not forgetting First Central Credit bureau among others, little majority of the NFF board and Congress members are rooting for him to be the next General Secretary of NFF.
He emphasizes integrity and transparency in sponsorship engagements, which has been essential in securing these partnership despite the harsh economic challenges in Nigeria. His careful of selection of teams and sustained integrity have made him effective in establishing lasting collaboration that help sustains and grow the league operations.
With such a rich resume, the out going GS will happy he is leaving the office to one of the best hands he nurtured to continue from where he stopped. Dr Sanusi has done his part and it time to say goodbye to managing the apex governing body of Nigerian Football, NFF. Let the revolution begin.
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