The vandalism of Abuja stadium

Aspectacle unfolded last week at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, Abuja, after the Black Stars of Ghana ended Nigeria’s dream of becoming the first African country to qualify for four consecutive World Cups. The Black Stars had previously held the Super Eagles to a goalless draw in Kumasi. After the referee’s final whistle in the match which ended in a tie and gave Ghana an edge via the away-goal rule, angry fans of the Super Eagles descended on the recently refurbished stadium, destroying everything in sight. They poured into the pitch from all sides, upturned the dugout and smashed its glasses.  Following the incident, Mr. Sunday Dare, Nigeria’s Minister of Youth and Sports Development, deplored the dastardly incident, vowing to bring the perpetrators to book. Chairman of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, had earmarked $1 million for the renovation of some parts of the 60,000-capacity stadium in August 2020.

Meanwhile, the last has apparently not been heard of the controversy over the Eagles’ failed bid to qualify for the FIFA World Cup scheduled to take place in Qatar in November this year. The Senate has mandated its Committee on Sports and Youth Development to probe the development. It lamented the fact that the Super Eagles failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup despite the huge funding provided by the government, individuals and corporate bodies and also expressed sadness over the violent reaction by irate fans, leading to the vandalism of facilities in the stadium and the unfortunate death of a Zambian and FIFA-CAF anti-doping officer, Dr. Joseph Kabungo. It, therefore, called on the Minister of Youth and Sports Development to appear before it, while mandating its Committee on Sports and Youth Development to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the Eagles’ failure, which came on the heels of a similarly disappointing outing at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament held in Cameroon earlier this year. In addition, it addressed the imperative of structuring the country’s stadia across Nigeria in such a way that future acts of violence by football fans would be forestalled.

To be sure, football remains a critical instrument that brings the vast majority of Nigerians together. It elicits so much passion, patriotism and oneness, transcending all the ethnic and religious barriers that unfortunately manifest in daily life. Football is an elixir and a sport at the same. It bonds the people. It is a fact that Nigeria is one of the most notable footballing countries in Africa and the world at large. However, in every contest, one team must eventually triumph over another. It is, therefore, saddening that players and officials were held hostage by a section of the football enthusiasts as if the country’s loss could be reversed through such coercive tactics. Many innocent Nigerians were injured as irate fans took the law into their own hands. Although not unprecedented, such ugly incidents should have been avoided by all means. They should be avoided in future. The violence was uncalled for. The outcome of the match, saddening as it was, did not warrant the transfer of aggression but the spirit of sportsmanship. In sports contests, no one wins or loses all the time. You lose some and win some, and heartbreak is part of the game.

Sadly, Nigeria risks sanctions for the mob action because both the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) strongly frown on unruly crowd behaviour and conduct and have a tradition of imposing strong sanctions on offenders. That being the case, Nigeria will end up becoming a loser on multiple fronts. Officials should guide against similar occurrences in the future, especially by revisiting the issue of proper crowd control mechanisms. Football needs not be war.

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