Ongoing transformation of the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere

[iworo]

Ongoing transformation of the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere

[Tbite]

It's a start but it is not enough.

We will need a proper national stadium in Lagos too.

Nigeria is actually falling behind African standards in stadia.

We have quantity in terms of stadia but not quality and not enough high capacity stadia.

That combined with insecurity and it is no surprise that CAF do not want anything to do with Nigeria aa.far as hosting goes.

Even Rwanda will host it before we do.

National stadium in Abuja used to be special, but even if it was fully rehabilitated, it is no longer all that special in Africa.

Probably we have enough for a drab bid, but I think we need to build at least one more proper stadium. Teslim is too small.

And as far as utilisation goes, we will need to be smarter than other African countries and actually come up with strategies for full occupancy.

[Tbite]

This is the problem when we spent too long saying we are the giant of Africa. The rest of Africa is closing the gap quickly.

In the 80s and 90s, CAF would never turn its back on Nigeria. Now they don't need us.

[Dammy]

It's a start but it is not enough.

We will need a proper national stadium in Lagos too.

Nigeria is actually falling behind African standards in stadia.

We have quantity in terms of stadia but not quality and not enough high capacity stadia.

That combined with insecurity and it is no surprise that CAF do not want anything to do with Nigeria aa.far as hosting goes.

Even Rwanda will host it before we do.

National stadium in Abuja used to be special, but even if it was fully rehabilitated, it is no longer all that special in Africa.

Probably we have enough for a drab bid, but I think we need to build at least one more proper stadium. Teslim is too small.

And as far as utilisation goes, we will need to be smarter than other African countries and actually come up with strategies for full occupancy.

I couldn’t put it any better!

[ohenhen1]

Nigeria is not the giant of Africa.

[Ayo Akinfe]

We need a 100,000 capacity stadium. Looking at the stadia in Ivory Coast fills me with hope for Africa.

[ANC]

We need a 100,000 capacity stadium. Looking at the stadia in Ivory Coast fills me with hope for Africa.

you like seeing empty seats?

[greg]

We need a 100,000 capacity stadium. Looking at the stadia in Ivory Coast fills me with hope for Africa.

you like seeing empty seats?

Dem no try for that one. They could have given away some free tickets or other incentives, and put all ticket buyers in VIP. Na the same Africans sef wey dey claim say dem no fit afford to travel dey fill up TB Joshua SCOAN.

[TonyTheTigerKiller]

A number of questions; for those who may know the answers:

1. What is the current capacity of the TB stadium?

2. Why is the LSG expending resources on what I recall was a very low capacity stadium. If the idea is to provide modern facilities for continued sports development, won’t they be better of seeking out a new and more expansive location?

3. What has become of the old Lagos City Stadium, Onikan? Now, that’s a location that would appear to lend itself to modernization.

4. Has the federal government totally given up on renovating the National Stadium, Surulere?


Cheers.

[COOKING SPOON]

ONIKAN STADIUM

[Robotnik]

Nigeria cannot get anything right. If they build a big stadium it will have outdated ugly design with brown tartan tracks, wooden advertising boards etc.

[ohenhen1]

We need a 100,000 capacity stadium. Looking at the stadia in Ivory Coast fills me with hope for Africa.

you like seeing empty seats?

Why are the stadiums empty?

[Gotti]

Nigeria cannot get anything right. If they build a big stadium it will have outdated ugly design with brown tartan tracks, wooden advertising boards etc.

Aren’t you Nigerian? Why are you sitting on your fat arse doing jack all?

[Enugu II]

We need a 100,000 capacity stadium. Looking at the stadia in Ivory Coast fills me with hope for Africa.

For what? Will you be hosting Man U and Arsenal? If you do not know it, spectator attendance to watch Super Eagles in Nigeria has declined sharply and hardly anyone watches the local clubs. Bros, a 100k seat stadium will be a white elephant project.

[kash n' karry]

When is Oga Tinubz gonna transform the countries 2 edifice stadium .. .

1. National Stadium {Lagos}
2. Liberty Stadium {1st stadium in Africa}

I believe that the curse from those 2 stadiums is upon our Super Eagles as to the reason why our
team's humpty dumpty-ness {pedigree and pride} has falling apart and cannot be put back together
as one of the World's best team. If those stadium are back in their glory CAF will give us hosting rights
and we will win another CAF trophy sooner .. ..!!
==================================================================
Common sense is not common !!
Freedom is not free !!!

[Gotti]

It's a start but it is not enough.

We will need a proper national stadium in Lagos too.

Nigeria is actually falling behind African standards in stadia.

We have quantity in terms of stadia but not quality and not enough high capacity stadia.

That combined with insecurity and it is no surprise that CAF do not want anything to do with Nigeria aa.far as hosting goes.

Even Rwanda will host it before we do.

National stadium in Abuja used to be special, but even if it was fully rehabilitated, it is no longer all that special in Africa.

Probably we have enough for a drab bid, but I think we need to build at least one more proper stadium. Teslim is too small.

And as far as utilisation goes, we will need to be smarter than other African countries and actually come up with strategies for full occupancy.

I couldn’t put it any better!

You don’t need a bunch of fanciful stadiums in the World Capital of Extreme Poverty (at least if you believe that narrative)…

Meanwhile, with all due respect to Rwanda (and a lot is ‘due’ to them in relative terms), it will NOT be hosting AFCON (and most definitely NOT “before we do”) with one international-class stadium billed to be completed by mid-2024. The irony of course is that Amahoro Stadium built by the Chinese CCECC (that is all over the place in Nigeria) was even more of carbuncle than the Abuja Stadium before the current renovations to turn it into a world-class multi-event venue (for sports, concerts, conferences, etc.), and thus cannot square with the notion that even a full rehabilitation (I would say ‘redevelopment’) of the Abuja Stadium wouldn’t suffice. Who are we trying impress? Folks who don’t have billion-dollar stadiums in their nations?!

The same Rwanda being proffered as some sort of signpost here, apart from the aforementioned yet-to-be-completed Amahoro Stadium, embarked on a policy of building 6 of 7 new “international” stadiums in each region that look pretty much like neighborhood stadiums in Lagos (so perhaps the example we should be taking from them is to cut our wasteful coat according to size). Frankly, at the very best, Nigeria doesn’t need more than 1 “statement” stadium (at best 2) in Lagos or Abuja. Personally, I would prefer Abuja as there’s hardly any point in building a world-class architectural masterpiece in Lagos when visitors have to navigate the increasingly sprawling slum much of Lagos is sadly degenerating into to get to it.

Overall, we should never be building stadiums just to host AFCON (or any other international tournaments). Any such hosting should (if it comes along) be a side-benefit of long-term stadium development policies (which will itself probably not likely to be comprehensive given that Nigeria is a multi-party federation with different tiers of government governed by different parties). There’s no point building a stadium or stadiums that would be filled up for one or two events while lying fallow and empty the rest of the year(s) - particularly given Nigeria’s maintenance track record (or the lack thereof). That’s what happened with the Abuja Stadium, not to mention most of South Africa’s WC stadiums or myriad Olympics venues across the globe.

Frankly, my only substantive issue is that many of the stadiums being built by state governments in Nigeria are CRAP and not fit for purpose. It’s not that they’re not so-called “high capacity” stadiums (what’s the point of white elephant “high capacity” stadiums given you cannot even fill up the small capacity venues you have?). Otherwise, the basic building blocks are already there with the Abuja and Akwa Ibom stadiums (hopefully this redeveloped Lagos TBS turns out in a similar category). The next step should be solid stadium development or redevelopment at sub-national levels (perhaps initially around clubs). If anyone wants an AFCON or other tournament held in cosy and reasonably-packed stadia, this roadmap suffices.

[Tbite]

A number of questions; for those who may know the answers:

1. What is the current capacity of the TB stadium?

Code: Select all

24,325

2. Why is the LSG expending resources on what I recall was a very low capacity stadium. If the idea is to provide modern facilities for continued sports development, won’t they be better of seeking out a new and more expansive location?

Code: Select all

It seems it will be THE stadium of Lagos from what I found in articles. it will be used for youth development, cultural events, and will be expected to be home to the Super Eagles.

3. What has become of the old Lagos City Stadium, Onikan? Now, that’s a location that would appear to lend itself to modernization.

Code: Select all

That one was modernized and seems to be doing well.

4. Has the federal government totally given up on renovating the National Stadium, Surulere?

Code: Select all

The future of the stadium is not determined. It can go in any direction at this point. The reason why nothing has concretely been stated is because they do not know what to do. I think the failure to get the national stadium in Abuja right is actually a major reason why they are unsure about Surulere. Because they are unconvinced about their overall model. They are considering finding a concessionaire for both stadia. At the same time, they might also knock down the National stadium in Lagos and find another use for the area. It is possible that it will be demolished without a rebuild.

Cheers.

Answered within the quote.

[Tbite]

It's a start but it is not enough.

We will need a proper national stadium in Lagos too.

Nigeria is actually falling behind African standards in stadia.

We have quantity in terms of stadia but not quality and not enough high capacity stadia.

That combined with insecurity and it is no surprise that CAF do not want anything to do with Nigeria aa.far as hosting goes.

Even Rwanda will host it before we do.

National stadium in Abuja used to be special, but even if it was fully rehabilitated, it is no longer all that special in Africa.

Probably we have enough for a drab bid, but I think we need to build at least one more proper stadium. Teslim is too small.

And as far as utilisation goes, we will need to be smarter than other African countries and actually come up with strategies for full occupancy.

I couldn’t put it any better!

You don’t need a bunch of fanciful stadiums in the World Capital of Extreme Poverty (at least if you believe that narrative)…

Meanwhile, with all due respect to Rwanda (and a lot is ‘due’ to them in relative terms), it will NOT be hosting AFCON (and most definitely NOT “before we do”) with one international-class stadium billed to be completed by mid-2024. The irony of course is that Amahoro Stadium built by the Chinese CCECC (that is all over the place in Nigeria) was even more of carbuncle than the Abuja Stadium before the current renovations to turn it into a world-class multi-event venue (for sports, concerts, conferences, etc.), and thus cannot square with the notion that even a full rehabilitation (I would say ‘redevelopment’) of the Abuja Stadium wouldn’t suffice. Who are we trying impress? Folks who don’t have billion-dollar stadiums in their nations?!

The same Rwanda being proffered as some sort of signpost here, apart from the aforementioned yet-to-be-completed Amahoro Stadium, embarked on a policy of building 6 of 7 new “international” stadiums in each region that look pretty much like neighborhood stadiums in Lagos (so perhaps the example we should be taking from them is to cut our wasteful coat according to size). Frankly, at the very best, Nigeria doesn’t need more than 1 “statement” stadium (at best 2) in Lagos or Abuja. Personally, I would prefer Abuja as there’s hardly any point in building a world-class architectural masterpiece in Lagos when visitors have to navigate the increasingly sprawling slum much of Lagos is sadly degenerating into to get to it.

Overall, we should never be building stadiums just to host AFCON (or any other international tournaments). Any such hosting should (if it comes along) be a side-benefit of long-term stadium development policies (which will itself probably not likely to be comprehensive given that Nigeria is a multi-party federation with different tiers of government governed by different parties). There’s no point building a stadium or stadiums that would be filled up for one or two events while lying fallow and empty the rest of the year(s) - particularly given Nigeria’s maintenance track record (or the lack thereof). That’s what happened with the Abuja Stadium, not to mention most of South Africa’s WC stadiums or myriad Olympics venues across the globe.

Frankly, my only substantive issue is that many of the stadiums being built by state governments in Nigeria are CRAP and not fit for purpose - not that they’re not so-called “high capacity” stadiums (what’s the point of white elephant “high capacity” stadiums given you cannot even fill up the small capacity venues you have?). Otherwise, the basic building blocks are already there with the Abuja and Akwa Ibom stadiums (plus hopefully this redeveloped Lagos TBS). The next step should be international-class stadium development or redevelopment at sub-national levels. There’s really little, if any at all, substantial or substantive financial benefit or windfall from hosting AFCON (if any, it accrues to CAF), but if anyone wants an AFCON or other tournament in cosy and reasonably-packed stadia, this roadmap suffices.

It is Nigeria, of course the demand for high capacity stadia is there (in theory). In fact, I am sure that we can fill 100,000 stadia if we wanted to (it will take some time to curate).

It is not about being developing. Nigeria actually has the highest football participation rate in the world according to CEIS. We are actually the epicentre of football in the world, we just do not act like it.

We do not build the infrastructure and insecurity is rampant, inflation is high. Demand for sports in Nigeria is much higher than in most of the world.

Now ok, to your point. Can we get the basic operational environment right in 3-6 years, knowing Nigeria? Ok, we almost certainly wouldn't, but that has to be the goal. We need something to use as a push.

Look at how India manages sports. The idea of being developing is a poor excuse. Nigeria's issue is not that it is not an advanced economy, its issue is that it is an inefficient one. India is an efficient economy. In spite of their ethnic divides and even caste issues, they are more meritocratic compared to Nigeria. They have made significant gains in transport infrastructure and they have industry. They have also invested heavily in broadcast infrastructure, marketing, and built appropriate relationships between leagues and federations. They have also invested in physical infrastructure such as roads and railways to connect people.

What you call demand is largely a question of planning. National Stadium (yes the dilapidated one) funnily enough is one of the highest demand centres in Africa. The youths use that facility even though it is derelict.

Then across the rest of Nigeria there are also clear cases of mass congregations of people for less organised sports such as Dambe, without the infrastructure. Judo, wrestling, Taekwondo, boxing, and MMA are also growing, largely without the infrastructure as well. So sporting demand PRESENTLY in Nigeria is high, what is lacking is curation.

Right now for example we are building a lot of rail infrastructure in Nigeria, the government should be factoring sports heavily into that infrastructure. It is the bottlenecks that stifle demand.

Look at AFCON. Some English people on Dailymail were saying there is no full occupancy, I simply laughed. In Europe, of course you can get better occupancy, when moving around Europe is so easy. Of course some fans travelled by air, but that is not how it works. You need to create 3, 4, 5 ways for people to get to the stadiums and that is how you build demand.

I don't think purchasing power is the road block. I think the issue is just basic organisation. Nigeria's problem is the leaders and institutions are too disorganised. For example in Ogun State they are presently not building the road infrastructure to support the rail line that is extending from Lagos. It is things like that that reduces your so called 'demand'.

Nigeria has the highest participation rate in football, which would also dovetail with high subscription rates and high stadium attendance rates, IF you simply make it possible for the fans.

It is not exactly rocket science. I am happy to build a case for the Nigerian government if I am awarded some sort of contract.