Revitalising Nigerian Sports: A Call for President Tinubu’s Surgical Intervention

Olabode Opeseitan

Mr. President, Nigerian sports are dying. They need your surgical intervention.

Despite the inspiring victories of the Super Falcons and D’Tigress at continental tournaments, the broader sports ecosystem in Nigeria remains in critical condition.

Our athletes train on crumbling infrastructure, wear substandard kits—as revealed by world record holder Tobi Amusan at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo—and navigate a system plagued by underfunding and neglect.

This is not a failure of talent. It is decades of failure of vision.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has shown—through far-reaching reforms in fiscal and monetary policy, tax restructuring, industrial credit schemes, a student loan revolution, massive upgrades to oil and gas, health, agriculture, housing, credit access, and infrastructure—that he is not a cosmetic leader. He excavates rot, lays solid foundations, and builds enduring legacies.

Now, it is time to bring that same multidimensional approach to Nigerian sports.

Rwanda: Vision Beyond Size
Rwanda, with only 13 million people, is executing an audacious sports vision, targeting 540 new sporting facilities by 2029. These include modern district fields, provincial venues, and top-tier national centers, all supporting its bid to become Africa’s sporting hub and to multiply sports tourism revenues thirtyfold.

In direct contrast, Nigeria—with its 230 million citizens—remains far behind on sports infrastructure, regional access, and investment, despite infinitely greater talent and scale.

The message: Our rivals are building. Nigeria must do more than just catch up.

A Sector in Crisis
• Stadiums & Facilities: More than 80% of the nation’s major stadiums and training arenas are in severe disrepair or unsuitable for elite competitions.

• Grassroots & Youth Development: School and college sports programs have crumbled—millions of children lack opportunities for structured physical activity and talent discovery.

• Funding Deficit: Less than 0.5% of Nigeria’s annual budget reaches sports, and most is consumed by administration, not athlete support or facility upgrades.

• Private Sector Participation: Nigeria is outpaced by peer nations in sponsorships, sports business investment, and PPP activity.

• Athlete Welfare: National athletes sometimes fund their own equipment and medical care, while refunds for international travel suffer delays. There are severe gaps in insurance, stipends, and post-career support.

• Administrative Weakness: Outdated management systems, poor digital infrastructure, and low technical capacity hurt progress.

• Disability and community sports remain almost invisible.

• Maintenance Lapses: Even renovated facilities lack sustainable care, leading to rapid decline and waste.

Coalescing Reform: The Renewed Hope Sports Revamp Initiative (RHSRI)

In view of the enormous work required to achieve the laudable objectives of revamping Nigerian sports, Mr. President may consider adopting a multi-pronged approach that enables his administration to tackle this challenge from multiple fronts, while coalescing all efforts to rescue the sector under the Renewed Hope Sports Revamp Initiative (RHSRI).

1. National Sports Commission (NSC): Led by Shehu Dikko and Bukola Olopade , their focus should be on talent development, regulatory oversight, strategic planning, and urgent rehabilitation of existing facilities. Mr. President has thrown his weight behind them, but they require more resources to scale up.

2. National Institute for Sports (NIS): Under Comrade Philip Shaibu, driving innovation in technical training and research, with a call for enhanced investment and support to tackle skills and technical gaps nationwide.

3. Sports Infrastructure Advancement Agency (SIAA): A new entity proposed to be established, SIAA would anchor both the development and rehabilitation of stadiums, arenas, and sports complexes across Nigeria.

By forging PPPs, leveraging diaspora finance, and deploying cutting-edge project management, SIAA should be launched with significant presidential support, a robust take-off grant, and mandate for rapid impact in both the medium and short term—even as long-term transformation remains the goal.

4. Sports Economy Development Agency (SEDA): Charged with marshalling sponsorship, commercialisation, merchandising, and job creation through data-driven sports business growth.

All these vehicles and institutions should operate under a harmonised strategy—the RHSRI—that channels the President’s reform legacy and delivers measurable, visible results.

Bold Recommendations for National Scale
• Build 900 new multi-sport community hubs in the next four years—with at least one in every local government area—featuring football, athletics, basketball, and swimming facilities. Additional hubs will be allocated for specialized sports aligned with the competitive advantages and preferences of selected localities.

• Renovate and modernize 20 iconic stadiums, including Surulere, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt, Kaduna, Ibadan, Bauchi, and Enugu, to meet CAF and FIFA standards.

• Launch a Presidential Sports Innovation Fund (PSIF), seeded with a dedicated and catalytic take-off grant and matched with private equity and diaspora financing to mobilise $1 billion for facility upgrades, athlete welfare, and job creation.

• Initiate a “Sports for Schools” program restoring competitive sports in every tertiary institution, with financial incentives for school-hosted talent competitions and community involvement.

• Establish the Nigeria Sports City Network digital platform—a one-stop hub for event bookings, talent scouting, facility maintenance, and public-private partnerships.

Mr. President, this is the moment to be remembered beyond the presidency—for transforming Nigerian sports, inspiring hope, and building physical and human capital for generations.

The RHSRI will be your legacy—and Nigeria’s pride.

#RenewedHopeSports #TinubuSportsVision
#RHSRI #SportsEconomicTransformation
#NigeriaSportsCity #LegacyLeadership #InvestInSportsNG