Lagos – Aisha Falode, Coordinator, Nigeria Female Football, on Saturday said the Nigerian female league must be made vibrant to attract private investors to sponsor it.

Falode  in Lagos said that the league needed the support of the media to be presented to the public in a manner that would make it attractive to potential partners.

She blamed the failure of the Super Falcons at the last African Women Championship (AYC) in Equatorial Guinea on the lack of a strong female league.

“Without league matches, how are the girls supposed to train and test their skills. Leagues serve as an avenue where they can discover their strengths and weaknesses.

“They can then go on to work on their shortcomings and better their weaknesses. Besides, leagues provide the platform to synchronise team playing strategy,” she said.

The coordinator bemoaned the poor state of female football, saying that it could deliver just like its male counterpart at international competitions provided they got sponsors.

“You have private companies struggling to sponsor the male leagues but that is lacking when it comes to the female league.

“After all, the female team has won the AWC six times in 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2010. So that should give you a little confidence in us,” she said.

Falode said that it was difficult to privately sponsor clubs because of lack of funds which usually led to walk-over at competitions.

She said that the resignation of Kadiri Ikhana, the female national team’s coach, had left a vacuum leaving no one to coordinate the affairs of the girls.

Falode said that if there were no leagues, not even the best coaches would be able to perform trophy-winning magic at international events. (NAN)