Former Super Eagles star Daniel Amokachi has urged every stakeholder in Nigerian football to protect the new Euromatch partnership with the Nigeria Premier Football League, warning that the success of the $7.5 million sponsorship will depend on creating an environment that encourages the company to remain involved for the long term.
Amokachi, who serves on the NPFL board and was part of Nigeria’s golden generation that won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations and Olympic gold at Atlanta 1996, spoke during the unveiling of Euromatch as the league’s new title sponsor.
The three-year agreement is worth $2.5 million per season, taking the total value to $7.5 million, with 60 per cent of the sponsorship revenue expected to go directly to participating clubs.
But Amokachi believes securing the deal is only the beginning.
“We don’t want a situation where our sponsor will run away after six months,” Amokachi warned.
The former Everton and Club Brugge forward called on everyone involved in the NPFL — from administrators and club owners to players and other stakeholders — to recognise the importance of the investment and ensure that Euromatch receives the cooperation it needs to succeed.
“Everyone should respect this initiative,” he said.
“From the management to the players and all, let’s encourage them to stay and have an environment that’s congenial for the sponsor.”
Amokachi’s warning comes as the NPFL enters a potentially important new commercial era. After years of struggling to secure a major title sponsor, the league has finally attracted a substantial three-year commitment from Euromatch, a development that NPFL chairman Gbenga Elegbeleye described as a major boost for the competition.
The deal is expected to strengthen clubs financially, with the 60 per cent allocation to clubs designed to improve players’ salaries and welfare. Elegbeleye said the arrangement should ensure that the commercial growth of the league is felt directly by those who make the competition possible.
Amokachi therefore believes everyone has a responsibility to make the partnership work.
The former Nigeria international is not a stranger to the NPFL’s reform process. He was appointed to the league’s Interim Management Committee in 2022 alongside Elegbeleye, with the committee given the task of rebuilding the domestic competition and restoring credibility to its administration.
That experience has given Amokachi a close view of the difficulties involved in rebuilding Nigerian domestic football, particularly when it comes to commercial sustainability, administration and attracting investment.
The arrival of Euromatch now provides an opportunity, but Amokachi believes that opportunity could disappear quickly if the league fails to meet the expectations of its new partner.
His warning is particularly significant because Euromatch chairman Sadi Semih has already described the partnership as a long-term opportunity and said the company wants to use its technology and platform to increase the international visibility of the NPFL.
For Amokachi, that ambition must be matched by responsibility from within Nigerian football.
The former Super Eagles star wants administrators to maintain high standards, clubs to operate professionally and players to understand that their conduct can influence the reputation of the entire competition.
The objective, he believes, should be to make Euromatch feel that its investment is worthwhile enough to continue beyond the initial three-year agreement.
With the NPFL now carrying a new commercial identity and $7.5 million committed over three seasons, Amokachi has delivered a simple warning to everyone involved: the league has been given a major opportunity, and nobody should do anything that makes the sponsor want to walk away.
