December 07, (THEWILL) – Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development has taken the task of getting the refurbished Moshood Abiola National Stadium, Abuja certified by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to host Super Eagles matches as a top priority.
The objective is to certify the upgraded facility as one that meets the standards required to host international matches and for the national teams to play their games in.
Towards this target, the Ministry has urged the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to collaborate with it in facilitating the immediate installation of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology in the stadium and thereafter begin the process of getting the stadium certified by CAF.
As THEWILL reported, the newly rehabilitated main bowl turf of the stadium that included the installation of two new digital scoreboards was handed over to the Ministry on Friday, December 3, by Aron Nigeria Limited, the contractors of the Dangote Industries Group, which handled the project.
The last time the Abuja Stadium hosted an international match featuring the senior men’s national football team was the Saturday, October 8, 2011 fixture between Nigeria and Guinea. The Syli Nationale held the Super Eagles to a 2-2 draw in the race to 2012 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.
Now that an ultramodern turf, the likes used by Qatar for its 2022 World Cup stadia, and the digital scoreboards have been completed, the Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, is hopeful that a VAR system installation will allow CAF certify that the MKO Abiola Stadium meets the criteria for hosting international games and see the Eagles return to the capital.
Dare also urged the contractor, Aron Nigeria Limited, to ensure that the two-year maintenance period mentioned in the contract was fulfilled, adding that: “Our expectation is that our national teams will play at the National Stadium. Our national teams need home advantage.”
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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
