The chairman of 1XBet Limited, Dr Femi Babalola has come out with a promise that next year’s edition of the company’s community based football competition will be much better and bigger than that of 2024.
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Sports247.ng reports that Dr Babalola issued the pledge a few minutes after this year’s edition of the annual 1XBet Community Cup ended with Emiloju FC defeating Emaijos FC 3-2 on penalties at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos Island.
Babalola added that he was happy with how the sponsor and organisers were able to achieve all objectives for which the competition was established, then assured that they will not rest of their oars.
The 1XBet boss reiterated, “The tournament set out certain objectives from the beginning. One is to promote grassroots and community-based football.
“Second is to engender the interest of our youth in football. The third is for social interaction.
“Very important also is the objective of bringing out talents from obscurity of various interlands and showcase them in the limelight.
“Those are the objectives and I think, substantially, this tournament has achieved those objectives.”
Babalola spoke further about reasons behind the company’s decision to keep sponsoring the competition, which has been widely rated by many observers as the best youth football venture anywhere in Nigeria at present.
He added: “We have to make Nigerians happy, particularly our youths. We know that football is a big business. However, unless you bring it to the community level, it would be difficult for you to fish out the talents.
“That’s another part of the objectives that we want to achieve and I think, substantially, we have been able to achieve it.
“Over 50 teams started this competition. They were able to compete all along the way in the qualifying stage, after which we pruned them to eight, and now we have a winner.”
The jocular business mogul concluded by looking at the gains of 1XBet Cup 2024, which he said was better than that of 2023, and assured that the next one will be even greater.
“When the matches were going on, foreign agents and Nigerian league clubs were able to identify talents. They are already talking to them for engagements. I believe that is a very big thing.
“I can also assure you that we are going to sustain this competition. This is the second edition. The first edition took place last year.
“This is an enlarged and advanced version of what we did last year. So, as we go into the future, we are looking at a bigger tournament.
“We want it to be more inclusive and more participatory than this. So, you can imagine what next year’s edition will be like.
“Since we were able to have such a big event this year, the next one will be bigger, more participatory and more inclusive,” Babalola reassured.
