Mouktar Calls Time on Abuja’s NPFL Standby Role, Urges Local Pathway

Abuja may be Nigeria’s political capital, but on matchdays the city still lacks a consistent top-flight identity. Alhaji Adam Mouktar, chairman of the FCT Football Association, says the excuses are over and insists the Federal Capital Territory must build a football pathway that produces FCT clubs, players, and long-term progress rather than relying on supporters to travel for entertainment.

From the stands to the grassroots: Mouktar’s push for FCT football

1. Mouktar says he regularly watches teams outside the capital, travelling to see sides such as Nasarawa United in Lafia, Niger Tornadoes in Minna and Kano Pillars in Kano, but he frames the key issue as simple: what is Abuja doing for itself on the football map.
2. He links his concern to a wider set of problems across Nigerian football, including the rise of deceptive “agents” targeting desperate families, a national team that he believes lacks a clear long-term plan, and a domestic league that struggles to develop players ready for the Super Eagles.
3. He argues that for a city the size of Abuja, it is no longer acceptable for football fans to be left watching from a distance while the capital fails to field strong representatives in the top tier.
4. To illustrate what he wants Abuja to learn, Mouktar points to Lagos, where he says three clubs are expected to compete in the NPFL next season: Sporting Lagos, Inter Lagos and United City. He adds that Sporting Supreme came close to matching that ambition two seasons ago but failed to earn promotion.
5. In Mouktar’s view, the solution starts away from the city centre, in the area councils, where he believes hidden talent has gone undiscovered for too long.
6. He explains that when he assumed control of the FCT FA, he concluded that without proper infrastructure, meaningful competitions cannot even begin. He says football activity had been concentrated inside the city, prompting him to redirect attention to the area councils.
7. That strategic shift, he says, is already delivering results. Bwari, which Mouktar describes as the strongest sub-association under the FCT FA, has hosted matches featuring Kano Pillars, Enugu Rangers and clubs from the Nigeria National League.
8. He adds that Sporting Supreme’s under-19 and senior teams, based in Bwari, recently reached the FA Cup final—evidence, in his words, of the opportunities created through the new approach.
9. Mouktar says Bwari has developed into one of the strongest football hubs under the FCT FA, and credits the FA Cup run to deliberate efforts to provide pathways for teams from the area.
10. Despite those gains, he acknowledges that major obstacles remain, with poor infrastructure continuing to limit development across the capital.
11. He raises concerns about the increasing commercialisation of community pitches, arguing that facilities meant to nurture football are being treated as profit-making ventures.
12. One plan to upgrade the Area 3 pitch into a major football venue reportedly collapsed after part of the land was set aside for a bus park, which Mouktar says effectively ruined the pitch.
13. He says the decision reflected a case where public interest was overridden, leaving football to suffer once everything is driven by business priorities.
14. Mouktar calls for government to improve access to community pitches and urges schools to open their grounds for football activities, noting that such access is often withdrawn when school leadership changes.
15. He also identifies fake football agents as a rapidly growing threat to young players and their families, saying scammers exploit anxious parents with promises of trials and contracts abroad—such as in Turkey and Lithuania—before demanding large sums for opportunities that do not exist.
16. Mouktar says parents contact him daily to verify letters and academies, describing it as a multi-billion-naira scam industry.
17. He believes the problem is intensified by impatience, with families seeking shortcuts rather than letting players progress through the correct stages of development.
18. On the development pathway, he argues that it is unrealistic to expect a child to jump from primary school straight into university and survive—saying football requires the same kind of step-by-step growth through proper structures.
19. When discussing the national team, Mouktar calls for accountability over the Super Eagles missing out on qualification for recent major tournaments, and warns that without a master plan extending beyond quick fixes, the same failures will return.
20. He says Nigeria may miss the next World Cup as well if nothing changes, and insists the Nigeria Football Federation should be held responsible because it administers football in the country.
21. He questions the increasing reliance on foreign-born players in the Super Eagles, warning that homegrown talent is being overlooked and asking what becomes of local players who never get a real chance.
22. He adds that even national team coaches appear to struggle to identify NPFL players ready for the highest level, which he links to his assessment that the domestic league is declining.
23. However, Mouktar rejects the view that money is the main issue, saying he does not believe funding is the biggest problem. He argues that once the right environment is built, the right people are put in place and trust is established, investment will follow.
24. With the 2026 FIFA World Cup scheduled to be held in the United States, he warns the stakes for Nigeria are extremely high, arguing that failure to qualify would damage the country’s relevance on the global stage.
25. On his own ambitions, he says being NFF president is not an end goal, and that whether he is inside or outside the system he still wants to contribute. He adds that when the time comes, consultations should lead to an open contest.
26. He concludes by saying the legacy he wants is not about trophies or official structures, but about helping people—suggesting his lasting impact will be measured by the lives he is able to reach.

Under Mouktar’s leadership, the FCT FA says it has widened youth competitions, launched talent discovery efforts, expanded women’s football and introduced coaching education programmes across Abuja—aiming to turn the capital into a benchmark for grassroots development in Nigeria.