Enugu: Coal City Football League unveils Bet9ja as official sponsor

Coal City Football League (Boolu Ogbe), has unveiled a betting company, Bet9ja Foundation, as the official sponsor of its 2023 Season 4 competition in the state.

Our correspondent reports that the football league has been an annual event which started in 2020 with the aim of re-uniting, re-orienting and engaging the Youths through football.

The unveiling which took place at Swift Lounge Independent Layout, Enugu, on Friday, had coaches of different teams in the state in attendance.

The organisers of the league are in partnership with the Ministry of Youths and Sports, Enugu State Football Association and others.

Addressing the audience, Bet9ja master agent in Enugu, Emeka Ofora, said that the betting foundation, which had been in the business of gaming, now wants to impact the society.

“This season 4 will be a cracker and I want to re-assure all the coordinators that what we are having this year is not a one off thing,” he said.

Earlier in his welcome address, the chairman, Local Organising Committee (LOC), Donben Chisom, said the organisers had never found it easy staging the competition right from season one.

“Our purpose of Organising this league is to give the players a better life and platform to make a living through football and we are making progress,” he said.

He noted that more than 10 players got employed by elite football league clubs and by clubs outside the country after season 3.

Emeka Okparaji, the coordinator of the League, said that the football league would soon organise an under-five competition to catch them young.

Okparaji assured supporters that season 4 would be a memorable one and urged stakeholders to support their clubs both morally and financially.

Coach Calistus Ibe of Agbani Road, said his team was getting ready for the competition even though the kick off date has not been made known.

“We in Agbani have always packaged our teams for better tomorrow with players at the age bracket of 16 and 23.

“We use younger players so that they can excel after the tournament and that is why we have five players from last year’s team that moved on to play professional football,” he said.

Our correspondent reports that 34 teams will participate in this year’s Coal City Football League.