Chairman of Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), Honourable Gbenga Elegbeleye has come out with a bold declaration that matches of the domestic competition will start being aired on television from the second week of this month.
Elegbeleye made this disclosure in an exclusive interview with Sports247, during which he also stated that board members of the NPFL should be praised for being able to run the top-flight domestic league without a sponsor.
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The former director-general of National Sports Commission (NSC) pointed out, “We don’t have a sponsor for the league, and we are not even given money by the government.
“So, it was strictly a zero account that we operated with. People should, therefore, appreciate that we have been able to operate at this level … without a sponsor, no government support, and no money flowing from anywhere.
“So, we say kudos to the board members of the NPFL and those of us who are managing the league.”
Despite the challenges that he admitted the NPFL’s leadership is going through, Elegbeleye beat his chest with a number of achievements the league’s body has been able to pull off through the last three years and hinted that more giant strides will be achieved in 2026.
“We’ve been able to pay referees regularly. Although, towards the end of last year, we had challenges in making those payments, it’s something we are addressing squarely.
“We’ve been able to increase prize money across the past three seasons. We first paid one million naira to Enyimba. The following season, Rangers won, and we paid them 150 million. Last season, Remo won, and they got 200 million.
“We’ve been able to get a media partner, and before the first ten days of January, we are going to be on television. That’s my joy,” Elegbeleye revealed with glee.
