Afrinvest Partners NPFL to Drive Digital Transformation, Revenue Growth in Clubs

Afrinvest is deepening its collaboration with the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) to spearhead digital transformation and bolster the commercial capabilities of Nigerian football clubs. The partnership seeks to position these clubs for sustainable revenue growth, moving them away from sole reliance on government funding.

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After the broadcast rights today, the next money-spinning or revenue-generating resource is data. We need to tell ourselves the open truth today.

This commitment was underscored during a recent NPFL–Afrinvest Media and Marketing Workshop held in Enugu. The event provided training for media officers and marketing heads from all 20 NPFL clubs, focusing on crucial areas such as branding, enhancing digital visibility, attracting sponsorships, and improving fan engagement. The workshop's theme, 'The Role of Marketing and Media Officers in Generating Wealth for Professional Football Clubs,' highlighted the necessity for clubs to develop robust digital platforms and generate credible data.

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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.

NPFL Chief Operating Officer, Chief Davidson Owumi, challenged the clubs to embrace digital transformation, noting that a lack of reliable data and poor online presence hinders their ability to attract major commercial partners. "After the broadcast rights today, the next money-spinning or revenue-generating resource is data," Owumi stated, emphasizing the critical need for clubs to contribute high-quality content and statistics to build a central database. He urged clubs to increase their social media presence and generate data, as the NPFL's central platform relies on contributions from individual clubs.

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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.

Owumi also stressed the importance of financial independence for clubs, warning that "a dead media department is a dead club." He encouraged participants to apply the knowledge gained from the workshop to achieve financial health and break the cycle of expecting different results from the same approaches. Afrinvest's intervention, tagged 'Finance Meets Football,' reflects a philosophy of integrating sound financial structures with the growth of football, aiming to ensure the league's overall success.

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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.