Recently appointed chairman of the Nigeria National League (NNL), George Aluo, has been in sport journalism for over three decades and he’s undoubtedly one in a motley crowd that have served with undiluted passion and panache across several newsrooms, from print to broadcasting.
Yet in his first major interview after being inaugurated to lead a team to revive the fortunes of the country’s domestic second-tier football league, Aluo admitted that he would need more than his puritanical devotion to journalism to excel as the chair of the NNL.
“To me, this appointment is a call to service and I want to thank the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, under the able leadership of Ibrahim Gusau for finding me worthy to serve. I also see it as a challenge because it goes with a lot of expectations,” Aluo, who prides himself as being ‘a gentleman and a workaholic’, told NationSport.
“As a critical stakeholder who has been on the other side proffering solutions on how to move the league forward, the ball is now in my court to bring the desired change. “This appointment also shows that my contribution over the years in championing the course for a quality league in the country is being recognised.
“You know it’s not easy for one to be selected for this type of task in a country of more than 200 million people and I feel highly honoured to be saddled with the responsibility of turning around the fortune of the country’s second-tier league.
“And with the support of the competent board members in my team, I have no doubt in my mind that we’ll deliver on our mandate,” he said with his infectious smile, as he speaks passionately on his mandate and mission in NNL and other sundry issues. Excerpts…
From newsroom to football administration
“Well, as a sports journalist, I have interacted with many sports administrators, coaches, managers and players and in the course of these interactions, I understand their feelings, frustrations and pains. My job as a journalist also exposed me to how football is being administered in other climes where it’s taken as big business and this is what I want to replicate here.
Having said this, I want to also say that the present appointment offers me the opportunity to implement some of the things I’ve witnessed elsewhere in both the course of my duty and the researches I have done and I want to assure Nigerians and the NFF that I won’t disappoint.
Between the NPFL and NNL
To be sincere with you, I am not under any pressure to replicate all the successes achieved by the major league boards because the NNL and NPFL are not in competition, rather they’re partners in progress. You should realise that teams gain promotion from NNL to NPFL while those relegated from the Premier League come down to play in the NNL, so there is always that synergy between the two leagues.
However, I must give kudos to the present board of NPFL led by Hon Gbenga Elegbeleye, for their achievements in a very short time since coming on board and raising the bar in football management in the country and we hope to follow suit and make the second-tier league more attractive, both to sponsors, players and fans.
I believe that if the NNL is well organised, nothing prevents our national team coaches from picking one or two players from the league because we have so many talented players in the NNL and that’s what we shall be working on”
Mentors in sports administration
“It’s true that Nigeria has produced many astute sports administrators in the past, and taking a critical look at all of them, I will say I have two role models and not one. In the first place, I see Dr. Pat Ekeji as one of my role models. This is a man that understands sports politics and did well in repositioning our sports during his tenure as Director General of the National Sports Commission. Honourable Gbenga Elegbeleye is also another person I will consider as my role model. When you look at his track records as Director General of the Sports Ministry, you will marvel. Also look at what the NPFL has achieved under his leadership in a very short period, you will not fail to acknowledge him.
Avoiding pitfalls of past administrators
“Some of the major problems militating against sports administrators performing optimally is lack of sponsorship and support from individuals and corporate bodies. I say this because one might have good ideas but when the sponsorship is lacking, implementation of the ideas becomes problematic and eventually dies.
Support, as I mentioned earlier, is also a major problem; because when you don’t get the needed support there is little or nothing one can do.
Another point to note is the fact that a sports administrator must avoid favouritism and be firm in his decisions. He must be ready to have the stick and carrot; applying the stick when necessary and using the carrot when the need arises.
He must also be a team player, run an open-door policy and avoid running a one-man show.
He must be able to carry all his board members along and any decision to be taken must involve all of them.
My kind of person
“Well, Mr. George Aluo is a fine gentle man and a good family man and a workaholic, if permitted to use that word. Although I am not perfect, because no human being is perfect, I’m a man who stands for the truth and abhors cheating or cutting corners to achieve your aims. I’m also a firm believer in Nigeria being a force to be reckoned with in sports, especially football, and have championed that course for many years believing that it’s achievable once the right things are done. What makes me angry is cheating, lying, indiscipline and laziness. Once I see these traits in you, you will not be on the same page with me.
Personal approach and management style
“I’m going to run an open-door policy. Those who know me or who have worked closely with me will testify that I am not the type of person that believes he has monopoly of knowledge. I am a team player to the core, and will always consult widely and seek the opinions of my board members before taking any decision. To ensure a seamless administration, various committees will be set up and given free hand to operate as that will give members a sense of belonging. Staff discipline and welfare will also be on the front burner of my administration because it’s only when your staffs are happy that they’ll put in their best and not work at cross purposes with you. The issue of security at match venues will be taken seriously and we shall discourage any form of hooliganism at match venues with adequate punishment and sanctions meted out to culprits. We shall also take the issue of referees’ indemnity serious, as we want to avoid poor officiating and any proven cases of gross misconduct will be treated accordingly.
Above all, accountability will be my watch word because it’s only when your account is clean that sponsors will like to do business with you. As I mentioned earlier, sponsorship is the backbone of any project and we’re going to pursue this vigorously to avoid going cap in hand begging for money to prosecute the league. We have already engaged a reputable sports marketing outfit as NNL partners.
Immediate priorities at NNL
“My immediate task is to turn around the fortunes of the second- tier league and make it more attractive to both sponsors and fans alike. I want to have a robust and competitive league where people will come and watch good football and quality officiating. My plan is to also lay a good foundation and leave the league better than I met it so that those coming after me, will say: ‘yes, George Aluo did a good job.’
In fact, nothing says that a team from the NNL cannot win the Federation Cup and not only represent the country at the CAF Confederation Cup, but win it and that’s what I want to see during my tenure.
I know that some people will see it as a huge ambition But with good administrative work, it is achievable.
Settling down to the NNL job
“I wouldn’t say I have settled down, but at least we have hit the ground running as a board. We had our debut outing in Kano, where we organised the playoffs for teams; so, settling down is a gradual process. For me, the important thing is that we have hit the ground running and we are ready to actualise the mandate of the President of the NFF that the league should get better, so we now have to begin to plan for the new season. For me, beyond settling down, the thing is to get the job done by ensuring that the 2023/24 season we are to make plans for it.
Scorecard from first official outing “The NNL Super 8 relegation play-offs in Kano was a huge success. This is my debut outing as chairman of Nigeria National League and I want to give God the glory that it was a huge success. I want to thank the Kano State Government for playing host to us, and I want to thank the people of Kano for turning out en mass at the Sani Abacha Stadium to watch our games. I was really impressed with the turnout and that shows that Kano is actually the home of football and even the match that was played in the alternate venue, I was surprised at the kind of crowd that watched it.
Having said that, let me congratulate the Lagos teams; Ikorodu United, Smart City FC and Ikorodu City FC. Smart City FC and Ikorodu City FC for remaining in the NNL from the Southern Conference and Adamawa United and Sokoto United for retaining their places in the Northern Conference. Of the whole, it has been a good competition but my joy is that officiating was top-notch. The referees lived up to their dealing.
No coach, no player left here complaining of the usual thing of ‘we were robbed’ and all that. The referees were on top of their game and that shows that, moving forward, our league will get better, more competitive and all that. So, it’s been a huge success.
Plans ahead of next NNL season “Having ended the season successfully, we are now going to look at the 2023/24 season and then the first thing before we start the season is to hold our annual general meeting where the club owners will come in and then we will meet minds with them as a board and decide when the new season will start after the AGM.
We are looking at September-October in line with the directive of the President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau, that we should align our league with that of the world.
The NPL will be staring later this month; so, we are looking at starting in September or, worse case scenario, first week of October.
