Spires Five-A-Side tourney ‘ll create jobs for Nigerian youths, says Bankole-Allibay

The yearly Spires Five-A-Side football tournament will leverage on the many opportunities in street football to empower Nigerian youths economically, the organisers of the competition have said.

The Spires Five-A-Side football competition, which debuted last year, is a street football tournament, which features teams from all the divisions of Lagos State.

But the organisers of the competition have said that the ultimate aim is to make it a national championship, which will provide employment for the youths of the country.

Speaking during a stakeholders’ conference ahead of this year’s championship, the convener of the championship, Dr Femi Bankole-Allibay, said plans are on to mobilise talented Nigerian youths to profit from the many opportunities offered by football.

He said: “After a careful study, we decided to democratize the sport’s ecosystem. We want to ensure that as many youths as possible have opportunity to play street football. We allow everybody to play and at the same time we monetize their participation to add value to their talents.

“We want to ensure that those who are not able to make it to the conventional clubs or the national team earn money playing street football in their neighbourhood.”

Bankole-Allibay said their projection is that Spires Five-A-Side tournament would grow to become a nationwide competition, adding that the idea is to build a national league for street soccer.

The conference held at the CIBN Building, Victoria Island, Lagos, featured football coaches, referees, representatives of the divisional football associations in Lagos, members of the Lagos State Football Association and members of the media led by the guild of sports editors.

Also present at the event was the president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Prof. Pius Olanrewaju; the Registrar, Mr. Akin Morakinyo, and the Chairman, Kainosedge Consulting Limited, Mr. Laoye Jayeola.

White Tigers FC won the maiden edition of the championship by defeating All Saints Football Club in the final last year.