The Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) has reinforced its partnership with Afrinvest to accelerate digital transformation, boost commercial capacity, and help clubs achieve sustainable revenue growth, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
The renewed commitment was highlighted during the NPFL–Afrinvest Media and Marketing Workshop held in Enugu, where media officers and marketing executives from all 20 NPFL clubs received training on branding, digital visibility, sponsorship acquisition, and fan engagement.
Held under the theme, "The Role of Marketing and Media Officers in Generating Wealth for Professional Football Clubs," the workshop emphasized the importance of reducing clubs' dependence on government funding by developing stronger digital platforms, generating reliable data, and building commercially attractive brands.
Addressing participants, NPFL Chief Operating Officer Davidson Owunmi urged clubs to embrace digital innovation, stressing that poor online visibility and inadequate data continue to hinder the league's ability to attract major commercial partners.
"After the broadcast rights today, the next money-spinning or revenue-generating resource is data. We need to tell ourselves the open truth today. We have ongoing contracts, but do you know what they ask of us? 'What is your data? Where is your data for the league?' We don't have it," Owunmi said.
He called on every club to consistently produce quality content and statistical data to strengthen the league's central database.
"We need our clubs to be visible. We need your presence in the social space. We need all the clubs generating data because the NPFL only archives what you generate. If we have 20 active Premier League teams generating data from their clubs, it makes our website very rich," he added.
Owunmi also challenged clubs to pursue financial sustainability rather than relying solely on government allocations.
"You cannot just depend on the government continuously. A dead media department is a dead club. A dead marketing unit is a dead club. We want our clubs to be healthy financially. Enough is enough. You cannot be doing the same thing repeatedly and expect a different result," he stated.
Afrinvest's Enugu Office Manager, Emmanuel Eleojo, explained that the company's collaboration with the NPFL is built on its "Finance Meets Football" philosophy, which seeks to combine sound financial management with football development.
"For us at Afrinvest, internally, there is this philosophy we call 'Finance Meets Football'. That is how we have tagged our intervention with our partnership with Rangers International and now the NPFL. The success of the Nigerian football league is not only about what happens on the pitch but also the strength of those behind the institutions and clubs," Eleojo said.
Rangers International General Manager Amobi Ezeaku commended both Afrinvest and the NPFL for organising the initiative, describing it as a significant step toward improving the financial future of Nigerian clubs.
"I appreciate Afrinvest for agreeing to sponsor this workshop that is about to change our financial status as a league. We want to see our clubs' jerseys all over the country. Media officers and marketing directors should be our backbone in terms of revenue generation," Ezeaku remarked.
One of the workshop's lead facilitators, George Isitua-Onukwu, encouraged clubs to adopt structured commercial strategies, including a 12-month marketing calendar with clearly defined timelines for sponsorship renewals, activations, and reporting.
He noted that clubs with organised commercial plans are better positioned to build stronger brands, attract sponsors, and generate sustainable long-term revenue.