AFCON
New Lease Of Life And Energy To Score Goals Restored As Life Beer, Zagg Energy Malt, And Goldberg Galvanise Super Eagles To Glory Path –
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
It is another match day and another opportunity to renew the support for Nigeria’s lead sports brand, the Super Eagles. They are already at cusp of another continental honour as they engage the Palancas Negras of Angola in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire.
“Yes, we want the Super Eagles to go all out on Friday against Angola, that is why we are galvanizing all the support for the team,” said Head of Marketing Communications, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Sandra Amachree.
From an initial state of despondency, life has returned to the dreams of Nigerians whose team, the Super Eagles are at the brink of winning their fourth Africa Cup of Nations title in Cote d’Ivoire.
Barely a month ago, hopes were sagging. Not thanks to a run of winless matches. Even their most ardent fans had lost hope.
What a turnaround it has been! The team is just three matches away from becoming African champions again.
They had survived the spate of upsets that had swept away teams that were even higher rated in FIFA’s latest ranking.
Great thanks to their most ardent corporate backers, the Nigeria Breweries Plc whose supporting brands – Goldberg Lager Beer, Life Continental Beer, and Zagg Energy Malt Drink have combined as worthy partners of the Super Eagles.
Over a thousand viewing outlets in bars across Nigeria to galvanize support for Super Eagles
Now the team can be home away from home as the three official partner brands supported the members of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club to Cote d’Ivoire to sheer the Super Eagles.
Even while playing against the hosts, Cote d’Ivoire in their second group match, the chants, the drumming, and the singing of the Nigeria Breweries sponsored cheerleaders drowned that of the hosts.
On Thursday, the eve of the quarter-finals, the Nigerian Breweries powered Nigerian Football Supporters’ Club in Abidjan as well as football icon, Segun Odegbami went round the streets of Abidjan for mobilisation and sensitization of Nigerians in that country to raise the support base for the Super Eagles.
“That’s just one of the direct supports we have given the Super Eagles,” remarked Sandra Amachree, the Head of Marketing Communications at Nigerian Breweries Plc.
There are more activations by the Nigerian Breweries who have been partnering with the Nigeria Football Federation and all the Nigerian football teams since February 2018.
The support has not been limited to just the theatre of action in Cote d’Ivoire. The spirits of the Super Eagles followers have been lifted by the Nigerian Breweries through the Life Continental Beer and Goldberg.
In lending a lease of life, Life Continental Beer unveiled a campaign – Jee‘ Turo Ugo – a clarion call that conveys the message ‘Go For Glory’ for not just the Super Eagles but most of their fans, especially those in Southeast Nigeria where the Life Continental Beer is the first choice for connoisseurs.
Apart from the direct support to the Super Eagles through the partnership with the NFF as well as to the supporters in Cote d’Ivoire through the Nigeria Football Supporters Club, Life Continental Beer, like Goldberg also galvanize local support by getting fans engaged and rewarding their support through activation at several bars across the country. In all, there are 1,200 outlets.
The branding is shared among the three products of the Nigerian Breweries while consideration was also placed on the regions where brands are most popular.
Chima Dim, the Senior Brand Manager, Life Continental illustrated this when he remarked that the theme: Jee‘ Turo Ugo was chosen for Life Continental Beer because of the brand’s popularity in South East. “It is our way of mustering support for the Super Eagles through the clarion call of ‘Go for Glory”, Chima Dim asserted.
As the excitement reaches the quarter-final stage with Nigeria meeting old foes, in Angola this Friday, the clarion call will even be louder.
“Goldberg is ready to amplify the cheers, fuel the passion, and witness history in the making”, remarked Senior Brand Manager Goldberg, Kunle Aroyehun whose brand is very popular in South West Nigeria.
Goldberg will not relent on its support. We will propel the Super Eagles to win their fourth title”, said Aroyehun.
Amachree added that the excitement around the AFCON tournament is increasing as the Super Eagles are progressing.
After Friday’s match, the team is expected to get to the final stages as 20 other initial participants would have fallen out.
With the increased chances of yet another podium finish for the Super Eagles, the trio of Goldberg, Life Beer, and Zagg are matching the tempo with increased activations.
Goldberg, the iconic Nigerian lager, is not just raising the volume across selected viewing centres; they’re also raising the stakes with their interactive Fantasy League Challenge (FLC).
Fans can predict match outcomes and score points, with top predictors walking away with amazing prizes.
The “OmoluabiGameOn” campaign goes further, encouraging predictions and rewarding loyal supporters with the hashtag #OmoluabiGameOn.
For Life Continental, the official beer of the Super Eagles, it is bringing the taste of victory to fans across the country.
With special viewing events and exciting in-bar activations, Life is ensuring that every fan feels the electrifying atmosphere of the game, raising a glass (or two) to their favourite team
ZAGG, known for its vibrant energy drinks, has transformed into a symbol of passionate support for the Super Eagles.
The Energy Drink with Malt is ensuring the Eagles feel the full force of the nation’s support behind them.
“If there is one thing that brings smiles to the face of Nigerians, it is football, so that is why we are going this extra mile,” the Nigerian Breweries Plc Head of Marketing Communications added.
With the unwavering support of these three powerful brands, the Super Eagles enter the Angola clash armed with more than just their talent and skills.
T hey carry the hopes and dreams of a nation, fuelled by the electrifying energy of ZAGG, the refreshing spirit of Life Beer, and the winning mentality of Goldberg.
AFCON
NFF Communication director unfolds 20 Points of a 20-hour ordeal on Libyan soil
NFF’s Director of Communications, Dr Ademola Olajire, provides a point-by-point account of how a keenly-anticipated Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match was relegated to a fiasco by Libyan federal authorities and Football Federation
1) The chartered ValueJet aircraft departed from the Victor Attah International Airport, Uyo at 11.55hours on Sunday, 13th October 2024, and landed at the Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano at 13.10hours, for the completion of immigration formalities and for the aircraft to refuel.
2) The aircraft took off from Kano at 15.18hours, for the 3 hours and 35 minutes flight to Benghazi, Libya, expecting to arrive a few minutes before 8pm Libya time.
3) Just as he was about to commence his initial approach into Benghazi, the captain (pilot) was instructed by the control tower that he could not land in Benghazi (despite having all the required landing papers and having completed all formalities before leaving Uyo and later, Kano, but should proceed to the Al-Abraq International Airport, even though the airport lacked the control navigators for landing at such hours. He complained that he was short on fuel but his words fell on deaf ears as he was told sternly that the directive was from ‘higher authorities.’
4) On landing at the Al-Abraq International Airport, in the small town of Labraq, at 19.50 hours, it was clear that the airport was not a well-utilized facility. There were no scanning machines or the usual equipment for this service, and officials had to make do with mobile phones to scan passport data pages.
5) The delegation, which included 22 players and team officials; NFF President Alh. Ibrahim Musa Gusau; Deputy Governor of Edo State, Comrade Philip Shaibu; a couple of NFF Board members; NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi; a couple of parliamentarians; a couple of NFF Management; a couple of media representatives and; a couple of stakeholders, was shown scant respect by the airport authorities who applied curt manners and stern tones.
6) It took over one hour for the team’s luggage to roll through the carousel, despite the fact that the bags and other items had already been hauled from the aircraft immediately on arrival.
7) No official of the Libyan Football Federation was at the airport to receive the delegation, as is the best practice globally. Airport officials could not answer the simple question on where the buses that would take the delegation members back to Benghazi (where the NFF had booked hotel rooms) were.
8) When delegation members including the NFF President, Comrade Shaibu and Dr Sanusi attempted to venture outside the airport to ascertain if there were vehicles waiting for the team, they were stopped in the most uncouth of manners by airport security personnel.
9) Calls to the General Secretary of LFF, Mr. Abdul-Nasser by Dr Sanusi yielded no fruits as the former kept promising that the buses would arrive in ‘10 minutes’, which later became ‘two hours’, and afterwards, ‘three hours.’ Later in the evening, it was no longer possible to reach him on the phone. Frustrated by this attitude, Dr Sanusi approached the security operatives to request that the team be allowed to go out and board the buses the NFF eventually hired. This request was rejected with insults. It took the intervention of the NFF dignitaries to prevent what would have escalated into a row as the NFF President himself was not spared when he heard an exchange of voices between the security personnel and his General Secretary. This aggravated the tension and further frustrated the team.
10) Hour after hour, and with mounting frustration, delegation members, particularly the players, grew restless. There was no food or water provided by the LFF, or where to even procure these items, and there was no network or internet connection at the airport. These swiftly increased the level of frustration and anger.
11) At past midnight, it was learnt that there had been word from ‘higher authorities’ (Libya is a jurisdiction governed by two different administrations – a UN-recognized cabinet in Tripoli and a self-imposed team over Eastern Libya including places like Benghazi and Labraq) that the Nigeria delegation should be delayed for minimum of 10 hours at the airport for what they falsely claimed was done to their team in Nigeria. (All conversations between the NFF General Secretary and the LFF General Secretary on the match in Uyo, both written text and voices notes, are still in the NFF General Secretary’s phone)
12) The NFF team was shocked because the incident referred to in Nigeria was entirely generated by the Libyans. They informed the NFF that their contingent would be landing in Port Harcourt, and not Uyo, only two hours to the team’s arrival in Nigeria. Despite this, the NFF moved swiftly to get authorities to grant their aircraft movement permit from Port Harcourt to Uyo, but this was jettisoned as the LFF apparently did not cherish the additional fee dispatched by the charter company. They opted to travel by road, refused to use the buses hired by the NFF and instead hired their own, and disrespected advice not to travel by night. When they stuck to their guns to move by night, the NFF provided security. The NFF even provided the team training facility the day after the match and secured direct flight permit from Uyo to Benghazi for the delegation.
13) Infuriated, the NFF President reacted: “We anticipated some shocks here given the false account of what happened in Nigeria as narrated by their team captain. But we did not expect these shenanigans. What I am seeing is despicable and has no place in the game of football which is meant to foster excellent relationships among nations and bring peoples from diverse cultures, religious persuasions and economic and political interests together in an ambience of peace and joy.”
14) The NFF learnt that the Embassy of Nigeria in Tripoli had written, a fortnight earlier, to the authorities in Benghazi that they would want to welcome the Nigeria delegation on arrival. This application was said to have been rejected outright.
15) In a conscious effort to play down their frustration, anger and hunger, players and officials resorted to playing games, listening to music, chatting themselves up, scanning through the airport exit door to see if any vehicles had arrived, and generally looked forward to daybreak, which they hoped would bring much-sought-after relief.
16) Many calls were made to higher authorities in Nigeria to apprise them of the situation, and these persons all expressed fears for the safety and security of the team. These fears were real and justified given the plethora of threats thrown by the Libyans on legacy and social media in the days before and after the match in Uyo. At 2am, Captain William Ekong met the NFF President in the company of the NFF General Secretary to inform the President that the team may not be able to go ahead with the match, due to trauma, fatigue and body aches that resulted from lack of food, dehydration and very cruel and unimaginable treatment, which had led to some players falling ill.
17) The NFF repeated calls to officials of the Confederation of African Football, Nigeria’s FIFA Council Member Mr. Amaju Melvin Pinnick and higher authorities in Nigeria. It dispatched a letter to CAF in which it detailed the antics of the hosts and hoped that the continental governing body would go ahead to “punish this rare bestiality visited on the beautiful game.” It noted that the Super Eagles had travelled hoping to enjoy a great game of football but had been sorely disappointed and frustrated by the unprecedented level of hostility and poor attitude of the hosts.
18) At daybreak, Mr. Maurice Eromosele, president of the Nigerian community in Eastern Libya, arrived with words of empathy from the Ambassador of Nigeria to Libya, His Excellency Alhaji Muhammad Muhammad. He expressed shock at the treatment meted out to the Nigeria delegation, who were made to spend the entire night inside the departure lounge of the Al-Abraq Airport. He said His Excellency ordered him to get a few things for the team, and he later returned with plastic bags loaded with croissants and drinks. These served as breakfast for the team.
19) More calls were made and eventually, it was agreed by all parties that the team should not go ahead with the match, but return to Nigeria to await the decision of CAF (who were briefed in detail on the situation) with regards to the un-played match.
20) After spending many more hours waiting for the Al-Abraq airport authorities to sell fuel to refill the chartered ValueJet aircraft (which was initially proving to be some sort of robotic engineering), the Nigeria delegation departed the Al-Abraq Airport (not worth the toga of ‘international’ by any scale) at exactly 15.05hours, bound for the city of Kano, and onwards to the Federal Capital, Abuja.
AFCON
African football legends, Adebayor and Aubameyang condemn Libya’s treatment of Super Eagles
Two former African Footballers of the Year, Emmanuel Adebayo of Togo and Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang of Gabon have condemned the actions of the Libyan authorities who subjected the Super Eagles of Nigeria to inhumane treatment at the Al Abaq Airport Adebayor was the African Footballer of the Year in 2008 while Aubameyang won the 2015 edition.
Local authorities left the Nigerian contingents unattended for more than 15 hours after they arrived on Sunday night.
Players were seen sleeping on the bench, and the team’s doctors raised concerns over their health ahead of the match.
Adebayor, a legend of African football and Arsenal wrote on X-platform:
“Nigerian Super Eagles were stranded at a Libyan airport, locked in without food, wi-fi, or a place to sleep after their flight was diverted.
“This type of behaviour is unacceptable for the progress of African football. No team should face such treatment. We stand with Nigeria’s Super Eagles.
“Respect and fair play must come first on and off the field.”
His Gabonese counterpart, Aubameyang who also played for Arsenal that the Libyan action should not happen in 2024. He wrote on X:
“Anyway that is not possible in 2024 acting like that.”
In a related development, the cheerleader of Nigerian football, Dr. Raufu Ladipo told Sports Village Square: “It is a big shame that an African country will treat our Super Eagles this way. It is barbaric. If they could do this to our team,
“One could imagine what they would have done to members of the supporters club . It is high time CAF and indeed, FIFA takes a very serious look and takes a decision that will serve as deterrent to forestall future occurrence.”
AFCON
BREAKING! CAF wades into the Libya-Nigeria Airport episode
Just as the Nigerian delegation is set to return to the country from Libya, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has waded in and referred the matter to its disciplinary board for investigation and appropriate action will be taken against those who violated the CAF Statutes and Regulations.
CAF issued the following statement:
“The Confederation Africaine de Football (CAF) has been in contact with the Libyan and Nigerian authorities after it had been informed that the Nigerian National Football Team (‘’Super Eagles’’) and their technical team were stranded in disturbing conditions for several hours at an airport that they were allegedly instructed to land by the Libyan authorities.
“The matter has been referred to the CAF Disciplinary Board for investigation and appropriate action will be taken against those who violated the CAF Statutes and Regulations.”
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