The Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, was built in 1965 and designed by the English architects Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry. The stadium was named after the late Sardauna of Sokoto and the only Premier of the Northern region, Sir Ahmadu Bello.
Aside the football pitch, the 16,000-capacity stadium also has a section for track and field events, as well as two indoor sports halls.
The stadium was one of the centres used during the 1999 FIFA U-20 World Cup as well as the 2009 FIFA U-17 FIFA World Cup. It has also hosted a number of international matches such as the 1977 Winners Cup semi-final clash between Enugu Rangers and IICC Shooting Stars.
It also one the stadia in Kaduna which hosted the 16th National Sports Festival tagged ‘Kada 2009’.
ABS is synonymous with hosting of football matches. The pitch in the main bowl of the stadium has always been in a good condition which made the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to take some of the Super Eagles matches there.
The last international game at the stadium was on March 23, 2016 when the Super Eagles hosted the Pharaohs of Egypt in a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier which ended in a 1-1 draw.
One unique thing about a game at the stadium is the traditional massive turnout of spectators to motivate the national team.
The turnout of spectators during the game against Egypt later earned Nigeria $5,000 fine from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as the stadium was overcrowded.
Business activities at the stadium mostly thrive on a match day as the stadium, unlike others; don’t have permanent shops for commercial purposes.
However, the pitch at the stadium has been undergoing renovation.
When Tribunesport visited the stadium, the contractor handling the re-grassing of the main pitch has been mobilised to the site.
According to the stadium manager, Gideon Malo, the contractor has been mandated to fix ‘Kiri-Kiri grass’ in place of the bahama grass there.
The state of the new Mondo tartan track at the stadium is also being given attention by the stadium authorities.
Malo remarked that part of the tartan track already with bad spots will have to be rehabilitated.
Investigation revealed that the tartan track which was last renovated about seven years ago is still okay for use, as the first leg of the Golden League organised by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) late last year.
“It’s a good idea to have a quality tartan track in place because if there is any national or international athletic championship to be staged in the north, this stadium would readily come to mind,” a Kaduna-based athlete told Tribunesport.
Also, Tribunesport gathered that the scoreboard in the main bowl is partially working and our source said, “the scoreboard needs to be overhauled for future use”.
It is, however, worrisome to note that the swimming pool section at the stadium is yet to be completed. The contract for the swimming project according to findings was first awarded in 1979.
“Successive governments affected the completion of the swimming pool section of the stadium. This is a contract that was awarded in 1979 during the Shehu Shagari administration,” Malo stated.
A visit to the stadium revealed that the swimming pool site is now being occupied by sugarcane farmers as no plan is in the pipeline to make the project take off.
“I don’t think there is any plan for now to complete this swimming pool project. Firstly, there are alternatives swimming pools in the state and this stadium is traditionally known for hosting of football matches,” Auwalu Audu, a football fan told Tribunesport.
Kaduna State also boasts an Olympic-size swimming pool at the Murtala Muhammed Square and this makes unavailability of a swimming pool at ABS less worrisome.
Also, the Murtala Square boasts courts for hockey, volleyball, handball, basketball, cricket, traditional sports as well as football pitch, pavilions, race course, and auditorium for multipurpose sporting events.
“The viability of the Murtala Square findings revealed makes traffic of athletes to ABS for daily training a non-issue,” said a social critic. On when the pitch in the main bowl will be ready for use again, Malo said,”the regressing of the pitch is expected to be completed by April 2018 according to the contractor and this we believe is feasible”.
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