The Spanish LALIGA has revealed that they are committed to female football development, especially in Africa.
LALIGA Global Network Delegate for Ghana and Nigeria, Desmond Chiji stated this at the FIFA Women’s World Cup final watch party organised by the Nigeria women football league, NWFL in collaboration with LALIGA in Lagos.
Chiji said there are plans to collaborate more with the NWFL so as to improve female football in Nigeria.
He stated further that LALIGA has some initiatives like the He-She initiative, sisterhood, and women’s empowerment, so they are working and talking with the NWFL on a lot of initiatives on how they can actually make women’s football in Nigeria what it is supposed to be.
“And also to help boost the economy as regards female football in Nigeria, because at the end of the day, what we want to do is to let people know that the sport on its own is an economy,” Chiji said.
“Football is a very big business now, and how do you develop the economy around female football? You need to be consistent, you need to continue to work and make new ways so it can be more interesting for everybody.”
Chiji said he would like Nigerian parents and female footballers in the country to understand that there is a career path in football.
He, however, believes that it is not going to be a walk in the park or that it would be a one-day thing, as there would be a need to be consistent and work more to develop female football in Nigeria.
The LALIGA official also called on Nigerian parents to support their daughters who want to go into football because there is a career path in the game.
“Nigerian parents should try to encourage their daughters who want to go into football, they shouldn’t just stop them from taking to football as a career,” he said.
“With a properly-planned process, Nigerian women can actually have a life in football just like their male counterparts are doing.
“Nigerian ladies can get to the top of their football careers and make good money from playing the game, and at the end of the day, they would be able to take care of their families,” Chiji pointed out.
Chiji also said when they started the initiative in Spain a few years ago, people did not really get into it, but the country finally succeeded with its team winning the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand on Sunday.
To this end, he said that the LALIGA, together with the NWFL and EA Sports, are creating an international women’s team whose players will come from all over the world.
“They will come from different countries, backgrounds, and languages, and from Nigeria, we have selected two girls in collaboration with the NWFL.
“They are going to live on scholarship in Spain, train, compete, and work for some years in order to give them the valuable experience for their football career to blossom.”
READ ALSO FROM SPORTING TRIBUNE