By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
An indigenous airline operator, Air Peace, has become the exclusive airline sponsor of the Nigerian football national teams after signing a deal with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).
The sponsorship agreement is worth N300 million in cash and value-in-kind and is renewable every four years, a statement issued on Wednesday disclosed.
The president of the NNF, Mr Amaju Pinnick, said the four-year deal is fund-based and will be “ploughed back to the players as it is a huge impact on them,” adding that it is valued at N300 million and the cash component is N200 million.
“The Air Peace brand is not just a growing brand but a strong and super brand, we will protect and project whatever we sign here today, we are grateful to the airline for the support, it is all about the unity of Nigeria,” the head of the nation’s football governing body further said.
On his part, the Chairman of Air Peace, Mr Allen Onyema, explained that decision to sign the contract was a way to express the airline’s desire to be part of the success stories of the Super Eagles.
He said, “We decided to partner with the NFF not just because we are enamoured by the hard work and resilience of Mr Amaju Melvin Pinnick in improving a lot of Nigeria’s football on the pitch and in the boardroom, but also because we passionately seek a platform to give Nigerians hope.”
The partnership was signed at the Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos with the NFF executives and Air Peace officials in attendance.
Super Eagles players such as Alex Iwobi, Joe Aribo, Oghenekaro Etebo, and Tyronne Ebuehi were also present at the signing ceremony.
Business Post had earlier reported that the federation signed a 3-year multi-million naira investment deal with a top telecommunications company, MTN Nigeria, making the organisation the official communications sponsor of the Super Eagles and other national football teams.
Dipo Olowookere