Sports
2022 Qatar World Cup Qualifiers: We’ll fill Abuja stadium to lead Eagles to victory with or without govt support” – Dan Arewa
…says tickets must be free
By Akeem Busari
As preparations for the return leg of the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup qualifier between Nigeria and Ghana heats up in Abuja, Chairman of Katsina State Football Association, Aminu Kurfi Balele, has declared his interest to team up with other patriotic Nigerian businessmen, even if they have to buy all the match tickets and distribute free to members of the public.
Speaking on a radio show monitored in Lagos, he expressed his disappointment with the decision of the government and NFF to ask soccer fans to pay as much as N2,000 for entry tickets to the stadium.
” I’m totally against the decision of the sports minister and the NFF to place such price on the match tickets. If we actually want to fill the Abuja stadium to its capacity, the gates should be thrown open for free entry.
Kurfi, popular known in the football community as Dan Arewa, further disclosed that he was initially not in support of the choice of the Abuja stadium. He noted that Abuja residents are mostly civil servants who would rather return home after work than go to the stadium, unlike residents of Kano, Akwa Ibom, Lagos and Port-Harcourt.
” We saw how the stadium in Ghana was filled to the brims. And we can only get such crowds in Lagos, Kaduna, Kano, Port-Harcourt because of their love for the game. That’s what we want and the only way to achieve that in Abuja, is to make the entry free for the fans. We must win and qualifier for Qatar.”
Balele who is renowned for his immense contributions to grassroots football development continued, ” We must fill up the Abuja stadium and do everything we can to ensure we qualify for the world cup.
” It is not enough to provide free buses to the stadium. Even if it means reaching out to richer Nigerian business men like Adenuga and Dangote, we shall do it,” he added.
Sports
Montage Community Football Tourney Registration Ends October 30
Cyril Ogar
Registration for the 2026 edition of the Montage Community Football Tournament will close on Friday, October 30, organisers have announced.
The tournament coordinator, Mr Raphael Ekpang, disclosed this on Thursday, urging interested teams across the six Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to take advantage of the remaining days to register.
Ekpang said registration had been ongoing since Monday, encouraging eligible teams to complete the process before the deadline.
The tournament, themed “Montage FM 99.7: Empowering Youth, Uniting Communities Through Football,” is scheduled to kick off on November 3, 2026, with playoffs across the six Area Councils of the FCT.
The grand finale will hold on December 5, 2026, at the Old Parade Ground, Garki Area 10, Abuja, where the top four teams will compete for first-, second- and third-place honours.
A total of 48 teams will participate in the competition, with eight teams representing each of the six Area Councils.
The participating teams will compete for cash prizes worth over ₦2 million and other valuable rewards.
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