Team Nigeria Diaspora Netball Squad to Face Scotland Ahead of Landmark London Trials

History is set to be made on Friday, July 17, as London hosts the first-ever Nigeria Diaspora Talents Development Trials, a landmark multi-sport event designed to identify and showcase athletes of Nigerian descent living abroad for future national team opportunities.

The event, scheduled to take place at the University of Hertfordshire Sports Centre, is being organised by the Nigeria Diaspora Talents Development Committee (NDTDC), an initiative of the National Sports Commission (NSC) established to strengthen grassroots sports development by identifying talented Nigerians across the diaspora and providing them with a structured pathway to represent the country.

A major highlight of the event will be an exhibition netball match between the Team Nigeria Diaspora Netball Team and a Pakistani side.

The fixture represents another significant step in the collaboration between the NDTDC and the newly inaugurated Nigeria Netball Federation (NNF) as both bodies work towards building a formidable national netball team with a strong diaspora presence.

Although netball enjoyed considerable popularity in Nigeria during the post-independence era, the sport gradually declined over the years, leaving the country without recognised competitive teams.

That trajectory is now expected to change following the inauguration of the Nigeria Netball Federation under the leadership of its President, Dr. Mrs Esther Aluko, alongside the active support of the National Sports Commission and the Diaspora Talents Development Committee.

Speaking during the inauguration of the Nigeria Netball Federation, Director-General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade, praised the efforts of NNF President Dr. Mrs Esther Aluko and NDTDC Chairman Dr. Tunde Adelakun in mobilising elite Nigerian netball players across the globe to represent the country.

“I am aware of the immense work put in by NNF President, Dr. Mrs Esther Aluko, and Chairman of the Diaspora Talents Development Committee, Dr. Tunde Adelakun, to ensure that we get many of these our talented netballers across the world to represent Nigeria. When you take note that most of the best netballers in the world are Nigerians, this is very encouraging,” Olopade said.

He noted that Adelakun and his committee had maintained close contact with diaspora athletes who have consistently expressed their willingness to represent Nigeria, adding that the committee’s work was instrumental in securing federation status for netball.

“We are so certain that Nigeria will soon be a global force in netball. We will take the sport to the schools but because this sport is more prominent abroad, we have readymade diaspora athletes to put us on the global map. In fact, that was why we set up the National Diaspora Talents Development Committee to help us take full advantage of these diaspora athletes,” he added.

Ahead of Friday’s talent trials, NDTDC Chairman Adelakun described the event as the beginning of a new chapter for Nigerian netball.

“In fact, we have a standby Team Nigeria Diaspora netball team. We have assembled players from across the globe who are willing to play for Nigeria and we will showcase them on Friday. This is a monumental grassroots initiative by the National Sports Commission, and they deserve all the commendations. We are only serving as facilitators, but the Commission’s support has been immense,” Adelakun said.

He lamented the loss of several talented athletes of Nigerian heritage to other countries over the years but expressed confidence that the current administration’s renewed commitment to diaspora engagement would reverse that trend.

“It has really hurt over the years seeing athletes that should ordinarily play for Nigeria playing for other countries because we neglected them. All this will change in the current dispensation. On Friday we will showcase a truly Nigerian netball team that can hold its own globally. This is really historic,” he said.

According to Adelakun, preparations for the netball project began in May, with training sessions producing both a senior team and a development squad made up of younger players eager to represent Nigeria.

The committee has also secured the services of former England international netball player and renowned club proprietor Alison Akinrinlola as Head Coach of the Team Nigeria Diaspora Netball Team, with plans to transition her into the role of national team coach.

As part of preparations for future international competitions, the Team Nigeria Diaspora Netball Team will face Scotland’s Commonwealth Games team in a tune-up match in Glasgow on Tuesday.

Adelakun said the immediate objective is to build a competitive team capable of securing qualification for the 2027 Netball World Cup through the Africa qualifying tournament scheduled for September 2026 in Kenya.

Beyond netball, the one-day NDTDC talent trials will feature exhibitions and talent identification programmes in basketball, football, athletics, taekwondo, golf and table tennis as the National Sports Commission continues to deepen its engagement with Nigerian athletes across the diaspora.