‘MKO Abiola Sports Complex to host international football matches,’ says NFF President

The President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau has disclosed that Nigeria’s senior female football team, the Super Falcons, will play the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon in an international friendly match at the newly renovated MKO Abiola Sports Complex, Abeokuta, on May 31st and June 3rd.

The NFF boss also stated that the Sports Complex would host Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Niger, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Nigeria in a West Africa Football Union (WAFU) Under-17 Championship in September 2025.

Alhaji Gusau made this known when he led other executive members of the NFF on a courtesy call to the Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, in Abeokuta on Sunday.

“We are organizing a friendly match for our senior female national team, the Super Falcons, against the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon, which will take place at the end of this month.

“We have arranged two-legged matches; the first leg will be played on May 31st, and the second will be played on June 3rd.

“So, we plan to play the first match on May 31st at Remo Stars Stadium, and the second match will be played in Abeokuta, so the match on June 3rd will be held at the MKO Abiola Sports Complex.

As the acting President of WAFU B, I have tried to secure the hosting rights for the Under-17 qualifications from WAFU B, which will consist of about seven countries: Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Niger, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Nigeria.

“We secured the hosting rights, and I informed them that we are going to host it in Ogun State,” he said.

Gusau also noted that the federation under his leadership had been able to sanitize the Nigeria Professional Football League.

“When we came on board, everybody knew you could not talk about the Nigeria Premier League because nobody could tell you when the league would start or when it would end.

“But we made a promise to ensure we do what is right, and we must do our best to make sure that the Nigeria Premier League aligns with other leagues around the world, and by this season, we were able to achieve that,” he said.

In his remarks, Governor Abiodun appreciated the management of the NFF for restructuring and repositioning the Premier League, which he said now occupies its pride of place among premier leagues all over the world.

Governor Abiodun also stated that his administration is working towards developing a sports economy in the state, saying that all hands are on deck to ensure that the National Sports Festival becomes a reference point in hosting festivals in the country.

The Governor also praised Remo Stars Football Club for lifting the Nigeria Professional Football League trophy, noting that it had been over twenty years since a football club from the state or the Southwest achieved such a feat.

“We will build an economy around sports, and I want to thank you for supporting us in that. Besides that fact, we are going to host the All African Under-18 and Under-20 athletics in July, which will take place here because of the facilities we now have.

“You have also announced that there will be a few matches played here, and we are very excited about that. This will help us strengthen the sports economy that we have begun to ensure we sustain this stadium that we have built,” he said.

The Governor also pledged the support of his administration towards ensuring that the state-owned team reclaims its place of pride among the comity of football teams in the country.

“As a government, I want to pledge that we will do everything to support sports, particularly football. Our Gateway Football Club—whatever it is that we are going to do, whichever way—we will invest.

“Because they say charity begins at home, we couldn’t have made such an investment and then they will not win the Premier League,” he said.