Sports hit new heights, Shehu Dikko claims Nigeria’s sports sector now contributes over 1% to GDP

By Maxwell Kumoye

Nigeria’s sports economy just smashed through a major milestone and Shehu Dikko, chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), says the best is still ahead.

Speaking with journalists in Lagos at the Big Sports Dialogue 1.0 on Monday, Dikko announced that the sports sector is now contributing “almost more than one percent” to Nigeria’s GDP, a figure that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

The revelation came after the NSC conducted a deep-dive analysis of newly collected economic data for Q4 2025, the first time the country has ever had structured, verifiable figures measuring the financial weight of sports.

It's noteworthy to state that this claim by the Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko has not been verified by Nigeria Bureau of Statistics.

“THE BIGGEST PROBLEM IS DATA AND WE’VE FIXED IT”

In a blunt assessment, Dikko said Nigeria’s biggest obstacle to unlocking the sports economy has been the absence of reliable data.

“I can tell you my final take on all this: there is a lack of data in this country,” he said.

“If we have data, most of these problems will not happen.”

To change that reality, the NSC has created what Dikko described as a “clear data sheet for sports” a quarterly system that tracks:

✓ Sponsorship inflow

✓ Jobs created

✓ Competitions held nationwide

✓ Economic activity from amateur to elite levels

And the results, Dikko said, are already speaking loudly.

“For the last quarter of this year, we found out we have done almost more than 1 percent of GDP. Nobody had that data in the past, but now we have.”

With Nigeria’s GDP standing at N51.20 trillion as of September 2025, according to the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics, Dikko’s claim places sports firmly on the map as a major economic contributor, not just a pastime.

THE 3% TARGET, A BIG VISION STILL IN PLAY

This breakthrough also aligns with the chairman’s ambitious promise made in 2024, to grow sports into a sector contributing at least 3% of GDP within four years.

If the new data is anything to go by, that goal no longer looks like wishful thinking, it looks like a roadmap.

A NEW ERA FOR NIGERIAN SPORTS

Dikko’s message is simple but powerful: sports are no longer just entertainment, they are business, jobs, infrastructure, and national growth.

And with the NSC’s new data-driven approach, Nigeria now has something it has lacked for decades, proof of sports’ true economic value and the numbers to chase even bigger goals.

Comments

Nigeria backs ANOCA rotation policy as Uganda lands 2031 African Games hosting rights

By Maxwell Kumoye Uganda's emergence as host of the 2031 African Games has been linked to the rotational hosting policy of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA), a framework designed to ensure equitable distribution of the continent's biggest multi-sport event among Africa's regions. Investigations have revealed that the East African nation benefited significantly from the policy, which seeks to spread hosting opportunities across the continent rather than concentrating them in a few countries. The decision is also understood to have been aided by Nigeria's withdrawal from the race, leaving Uganda as the sole candidate for the prestigious event. For Nigeria, supporting the rotational arrangement aligns with the country's longstanding contribution to the growth of the African Games movement. The nation has already hosted the continental showpiece twice, first in Lagos in 1973 and again in Abuja in 2003, making it one of only a handful of c...

Glazer family members studying Manchester United stake sale, Bloomberg News reports

Some Glazer family members have been debating whether ‌to sell their stake in Manchester United FC (MANU.N), opens new tab after more than two decades ⁠of ownership, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Several stakeholders in the Glazer family have been studying ‌the ⁠possibility of divesting part or all of their holdings in the English ⁠Premier League football club, according to the report. — Reuters

Protests and last-minute construction work disrupt Mexico City ahead of World Cup

Eight days before Mexico City kicks off the World Cup, mass protests by teachers and retired judges, road closures and last-minute construction work caused chaos in the capital on Wednesday for millions of residents who face long delays and complex rerouting of their daily commutes. On June 11, Mexico City will host the inaugural World Cup match between ‌Mexico and South Africa at Azteca stadium in the capital. With Mexico in the global spotlight, teachers and other groups have staged marches and blocked major avenues. They have said their protests, which are unrelated to the tournament, could intensify unless President Claudia Sheinbaum's government addresses their demands. The CNTE, a dissident wing of the national teachers' union, has threatened mass demonstrations at the opening of the World Cup in official statements shared on social media. The union is demanding the government fulfill a campaign pledge to repeal a 2007 law that overhauled the pension and ⁠social securit...

Iran to play World Cup warm-up behind closed doors, head to Mexico on Saturday

Iran will play their final World Cup warm-up behind closed doors in Turkey on Thursday before departing for their tournament base in Mexico on Saturday, the Iranian FA (FFIRI) said on Wednesday. Although it was one of the first teams to ‌qualify, Iran's participation in the World Cup has been in doubt since the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes on the Islamic Republic in late February. The squad have played three friendlies in two training camps in Antalya since the start of the war - losing to Nigeria and beating Costa Rica and Gambia - and on Thursday will face Mali ⁠in the Turkish sea resort. "Considering the importance of the Iranian national football team's friendly match against Mali, and in line with the tactical objectives of Iran's head coach, tomorrow's match against Mali will be held behind closed doors and without media attendance," FFIRI said in a statement. The FFIRI persuaded FIFA to allow the team to swap its tournament base from Tucson, A...

Z-PRO MEDIA

Search This Blog