Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Chairman, Gbenga Elegbeleye, has dispelled suggestions that there is any form of crisis in the league, declaring that the league has been on the right trajectory in the last three seasons.

Reacting to The Guardian’s story on violence in the NPFL and the attendant repercussions, Elegbeleye said: “The 2024/25 NPFL season was the most outstanding in our recent history as the season followed the schedule and had no disruptions.”

Citing factors that account for stability, he pointed to the conclusion of the last season on the same weekend as some European leagues and starting the 2025/26 season at the same week as the European leagues.

“It cannot be true that there is a crisis in the NPFL, which kicked off on August 22, as announced in May when the last season was concluded. That definitely does not portend crisis,” Elegbeleye insisted.

He dismissed the assertion that sponsors are absent or have withdrawn from the league because of fan violence, saying: “The incidence of fan unrest cannot be completely erased from football, which is a passion point that triggers emotional reaction in fans, players and officials.”

Elegbeleye added: “We have initiated sufficient summary jurisdiction processes to curtail and reduce such conduct to the barest minimum. We also have in our Framework and Rules a number of safeguards in the area of security requirements for our matches to hold.

“It is the responsibility of the State Football Association and the home team to ensure that there are a minimum of 50 Policemen and a contingent of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps members in addition to stadium security stewards on the ground at every match. Some clubs bring in the Department of State Security Services in addition to the stated requirements.”

He argued that football is a part of the nation’s macro security challenges, saying, “it is not possible to channel an entire city police squad to the stadium on a match day.”

Elegbeleye explained that a tremendous amount of improvements have been made in reinventing the league within the confines of the nation’s economic ecosystem and pointed to the prompt payment of the indemnity of match referees and commissioners.

“We cannot claim to have solved all the development problems of the league, but we are not where we were three seasons ago. Winners of the league have been receiving progressively increased prize money from N100m three years ago to N200m last season. That is not an attribute of a league in crisis,” he added.