Niger Tornadoes Football Club of Minna spent N5.5 million on each home match the club played away from home in the 2023/2024 Nigeria Premier Football League.

The Niger Tornadoes FC Chairman, Ibrahim Dada, made this disclosure on Friday during a meeting with sports journalists in Minna.

The club had in the past nine years played its home matches in the league away from its Minna home ground.

But it would return to playing its home matches at the Bako Kontagora Memorial Stadium on Sunday in Minna.

This was after nine years of sojourn at Kaduna, Ilorin and Lokoja at different times. The club had been playing home games away from home because it failed to meet the standards required for its pitch by the NPFL.

Mr Dada said, “I am full of joy that we are returning to Minna, because to execute a single match away we had been spending N5.5 million. But we will not spend up to N2.5 million while playing at home in Minna.’’

He explained that it was also stressful for the club’s handlers, in terms of travel time.

The club chairman said, “We usually have to travel four days before any of the away-from-home matches to Kaduna or any of the temporary home grounds to prepare for the game.”

He said hotel reservations for 25 rooms were usually made for players and officials and the minimum amount paid for each room was N15,000 per night.

Mr Dada stated that in executing the matches they usually spent five days at the venue, while also feeding the players and officials.

He stated, “We usually have to feed the 21 players, five coaches, seven support staff members and pay stadium fees for every match. We will also pay for pre-match meetings, pay the referees association and take care of other logistics such as transportation.”

He then urged the media to help the club sensitise its fans and other members of the Minna public to the need to maintain peace before, during and after the matches.

The club chairman said this was highly necessary in order for the club and its fans to keep to the new rules of the competition.

He added, “Once you violate any of the new rules of the Nigeria Football Federation and NPFL, your club may be sanctioned to play home matches away or made to pay a fine. But right now, we are happy to return home, because in our league home advantage also counts.’’

Mr Dada also expressed the club’s appreciation to the state government’s efforts in upgrading the Bako Kontagora Memorial Stadium to meet the NPFL standard.

(NAN)