Promoter of the Celebrity Boxing Franchise, Dr. Ezekiel Adamu, says boxing is positioning itself as Nigeria’s next major sport, arguing that the country has the talent, audience and opportunities to build a thriving boxing industry.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE News on Sunday, Adamu said boxing is becoming a major force in Nigeria’s sporting landscape as more investment, international partnerships and athlete development programmes take shape.
He said, “Nigeria is craving for the second big sport and I think boxing is stepping into that fold at the moment.”
Adamu said boxing has grown into a significant economic sector globally and presents a major opportunity for Nigerian athletes.
He said, “Boxing is an economy. It’s a huge sports economy. I think it’s fastest growing sports everywhere in the world.”
He added that the country’s challenge has never been a shortage of talent but a lack of opportunities to develop and showcase it.
He said, “I think Africa has never lacked talent. If you look at the sports landscape, almost every country has an African playing for them or doing something for them. What we’ve consistently lacked over the years is a platform, and that’s what chaos in the ring is all about.”
Adamu said his organisation is working to build that platform by creating opportunities for fighters to compete at the highest level without leaving the continent.
He said, “The Zone has given us that opportunity as well. It means that eventually, this athlete doesn’t need to say, I travelled all over the country to get the opportunity. You get the opportunity here, even more here, because this is our platform now.”
He also expressed confidence that Nigeria could once again produce Olympic and world champions through sustained investment in grassroots development.
He said, “I feel like what we are seeing now is what happened in the past. But moving forward, I think as we are now, eventually, I believe we’ll see Nigerians going to the Olympics, winning gold medals and all of that.”
Adamu said partnerships with international broadcasters and trainers would help accelerate that progress.
He said, “We’ll be coming here, setting up a gym here and from grassroots, we’ll start picking up this talent as well too and start building it bit by bit as well too.”
He maintained that boxing has the potential to become one of Nigeria’s leading sports while creating career opportunities and expanding the country’s presence on the global stage.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
