Abdulrahman explains NWFL’s clamour for FIFA’s $.19 million largesse to clubs

NWFL Chief Operating Officer, Alhaji Ayo Abdulrahman at the weekend explained why the Aisha Falode-led board of the Nigeria Women Football League is demanding a percentage of the FIFA largesse to Nigerian clubs whose players were paraded at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Abdulrahman said from his base in Abuja the world football governing body, FIFA and the Nigeria Football Federation should understand that without the women league board the clubs could play in any organised league. “And it is from management of the league that all the players who made the Nigerian team to the France 2019 were discovered and nurtured to become world-class players.

“There is no player on the Super Falcons team to the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France that didn’t play in the NWFL league at one time or the other.

“The NWFL deserves due recognition and if anything should come as incentives to the clubs, the NWFL should not be left out.

“Despite the lack of sponsorship, the league has been getting better every year with the effective organisation of the NWFL board. The board has been working assiduously to ensure the best league standard for the clubs in the three tiers,” he added.

Feelers are that a total of 20 Nigerian women clubs will benefit from a FIFA windfall, which the world football governing body pays to clubs whose players were enlisted in the final squad of participating nations at both the men’s and women’s FIFA World Cup finals.

That of the FIFA Women’s World Cup only started last year – the eighth edition of the competition.

A breakdown of the payments showed that Port Harcourt–based Rivers Angels – arguably the leading women’s club in the country – topped with a benefit in the sum of $45,500, with Nasarawa Amazons of Lafia in a distant second with the sum of $27,534, while Bayelsa Queens ran close behind with $27,103. FC Robo Queens of Lagos came fourth with $25,810.

Delta Queens of Asaba got the sum of $15,081, with the sum of $10,341 going to Coal City Babes and $7,756 going to Invincible Angels. Sao Paulo Queens smiled to the bank with $6,032.
In total, FIFA paid Nigeria clubs the sum of $194,031.57.

A number of the clubs are yet to receive the monies because they do not have domiciliary accounts, but the NFF has insisted they open one to receive their payment.