Yemisi Izuora
As part of its commitment to youth and sports development in Nigeria, Dana Air has announced its partnership with soccer stars projectTM with Nigeria’s ex international, Samson Siasia, scheduled to commence from 15th of July to 15th of August 2019.
The project which is scheduled to hold across 13 states of the federation: Lagos, Rivers, Abuja, Enugu, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Kano, Plateau, Abia, Delta, Sokoto, Imo and Plateau is aimed at discovering and promoting young talented football stars in Nigeria.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos, the Media and Communications Manager of Dana Air, Kingsley Ezenwa said, Dana Air’s commitment to youth and sports development in Nigeria is unwavering.
As you know, we are proud sponsors of two Nigerian Professional league teams – Akwa United fc of Akwa Ibom and Heartland fc of Imo state for the second year running and our sponsorship is just our contribution towards making the league glamorous and keeping the players motivated.’’
‘’Our partnership with the soccer stars project is a good opportunity to take a lot of our talented football stars off the streets and empower them with good contracts as Fifa accredited agents will also be around to select from the pool of soccer stars abound in Nigeria.’’
The former Super Eagles of Nigeria head coach, Samson Siasia, while commenting on his reason for the project said, ‘’the primary aim is to groom talents in soccer with first hand opportunity to be signed by international scouts.
‘Pre-screening exercise has commenced in some local governments and our desire is to search for upcoming players or professional footballers who can join the European league side on an automatic contract deal signing. ‘’
He noted that the trials which will be held across 13 states from July to August, will consist of several game practices and exercises designed to show the players’ range of ability, skills, speed and athleticism.
Dana Air, one of Nigeria’s leading airlines; is the first domestic airline in Nigeria to unveil a mouth watering sponsorship deal for two Nigerian professional league sides – Akwa united fc and Heartland fc of Owerri.
The airline is reputed for its innovative online products and services, superior on-time departures and word –class in-flight service.