Joel Ajayi
An A-list of resource persons have been lined up for the pre-season workshop for clubs in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) scheduled to take place in Enugu on Wednesday, July 29, 2026.
The workshop sponsored by Afrinvest, a leading financial and investment company, will provide focused professional modules for club officers in marketing, investments, brand merchandising and media.
All 20 clubs including the newly-promoted sides are expected to participate in the pre-season programme.
Davidson Owumi, the Chief Operating Officer of the NPFL, said the workshop is consistent with the league’s drive to improve commercial viability of the clubs and creating additional income streams.
“While we recognise that majority of our clubs are dependent on their respective states government funding, we also consider it beneficial to expand their revenue base.
“The objectives include making our clubs attractive to private sector investment through sponsorship which will have a positive spin-off impact on the NPFL as a brand”, explained Owumi and concluded by saying that improved club management is the core attraction for fans and sponsors.
Among resource persons expected to speak at the seminar are Dr Iorwase Derek Kaka’an, George Isitua Onukwu, Mitchell Obi, Nelson Ine and Harry Iwuala.
Kaka’an is a sports management scholar, researcher, lecturer, and football development practitioner with extensive experience in sports administration, marketing, sponsorship, and policy development.
He currently serves as a lecturer with the Department of Human Kinetics and Health Education, Faculty of Education, Reverend Father Moses Orshio Adasu University, Makurdi in Benue State.
Onukwu is the CEO at TBWA\Concept, where he is driving operational excellence to achieve their new vision of leading the ‘Beyond the Brief’ strategy to shift the agency towards tech integration, product development, and owned intellectual property (IP).
Obi is currently the Executive Vice Chairman of Mastersports International Limited, a prominent sports marketing and communication firm based in Nigeria.
He combines sports marketing campaigns, punditry and media production for the company and is immediate past president of the African chapter of the International Sports Press Association.
Ine of GTI Assets Management is an experienced investment banking professional and the brain behind the The Nigeria Football Fund (TNFF), an open-ended, SEC-registered unit trust and mutual fund launched to raise ₦5 billion through 5 billion units at ₦1.00 each. It targets transforming Nigerian football into a profitable commercial asset.
Iwuala currently serves as the Head, NPFL Media/Communications. He works as the backbone in the league’s media strategy and public relations.
He also has extensive experience of having worked in the main stream media, corporate communications at Globacom before transitioning into football administration.
The 2026/27 NPFL season will kick off on August 28.
