FCT Football Chairman sees positive legacy from Bundesliga
Nigerian clubs can learn lessons from the German Bundesliga.
The Chairman, FCT Football Association Mouktar Mohammed said this while on a tour to Bundesliga side FC Bayern Munich in Munich, Germany.
Mohammed said Nigerian clubs can use the FC Bayern Munich model to perfection.
Mohammed spoke on Sunday from Munich, Germany where he is currently on a tour of Bundesliga side, FC Bayern Munich Football Club.
He said that Bundesliga clubs have continued to lay down the standards for the rest of the world, in terms of financing, structure, sponsorship and followership.
“I had the rare opportunity to see the dynamics that have made the clubs in the German top-flight the most profitable in the world football. I think Nigerian clubs can indeed learn a lot from Bundesliga sides that go into commercial partnership with local companies in their respective areas, they draw financial strength from such contracts, rather than go cap-in-hand to state governors, who in Nigeria will starve them of funds,” Mouktar added.
The FCT boss said the tour brought to the fore the begging question of why Nigerian clubs always beg from hand- to-mouth from self-serving state governors.
He alleged that these governors usually see the clubs as mere pawns to be used in their hands to fester their selfish and inordinate desires.
Mohammed said that unlike the Nigerian League, the Bundesliga is financially strong and founded on a business model.
“This is basically to discourage control by a single entity, which accounts for great support that a team like Bayern enjoy from residents of Munich. Unlike the government ownership club structure in Nigeria, German clubs in the Bundesliga operate under the 50+1 rule structure that stipulates that teams are majority- owned by German club members. Bayern, for instance, draw its support from locals in Munich, creating a sense of belonging for the fans, who see the club as there,” Mouktar said.
He said that all these generally accounted for why a club like Bayern had sold all its tickets for the 2023-2024 season since February.
“It was irrespective of the fact that the Bundesliga had the lowest ticket prices and the highest average attendance out of Europe’s five major leagues.” Mohammed said
The football administrator also said that youth development was the cornerstone of German football success.
