More Tournaments or a Better League? What Does Nigerian Volleyball Really Need?
I recently took a quick poll to get a sense of what people within the Nigerian volleyball community think the sport needs right now. The question was simple: do we need more leagues and competitions, or should we be looking at how to improve and restructure what we already have?
The strongest response was for more leagues and competitions, while others felt the best approach would be to combine more competitions with improvements to the existing league structure. The poll was informal and is not intended to represent the views of the entire volleyball community, but the responses provide an interesting starting point for a conversation that has been around Nigerian volleyball for some time.
The argument for more competition is straightforward. Players need to play regularly if they are going to develop. Training can improve a player's technique, but competition is where those skills are tested against different opponents, under pressure and in situations that cannot always be recreated during training.
Clubs need that experience too. Regular matches give coaches a better understanding of their teams, expose weaknesses and give players opportunities to improve. Spending most of the year training and then having only a short period of meaningful competition does not offer the same level of development as a more consistent calendar.
But when the discussion moves to extending the national league, things become more complicated.
One response to the poll came from a club stakeholder who questioned whether clubs can realistically afford longer competitions. According to the respondent, both private and state-owned clubs are already struggling with the financial demands of the existing two-week arrangement for each phase. If that is the reality for some clubs, simply adding more days to the national league may not necessarily be the answer.
The financial challenge may also help explain the strong presence of military and paramilitary teams in the league. Another respondent, who identified themselves as a member of the League Management Committee, argued that teams with institutional backing have an advantage because many privately owned clubs have to meet the same costs with far more limited resources. It is a point that deserves closer attention, particularly if the aim is to build a league where private and community-based clubs can compete sustainably.
Another respondent suggested a different approach, arguing that the league could adopt a home-and-away structure similar to the NPFL. The argument is that clubs should have more regular matches rather than travelling for a short period to play an entire phase before returning home for another long period of training.
There is some merit to that argument. A more regular league would give players more competitive exposure and allow clubs to play against different opponents more consistently. It could also create stronger connections between clubs and their local supporters.
The challenge, however, is the cost. A home-and-away league would require clubs to travel more frequently and spend more on accommodation, feeding, transportation and other logistics. It would therefore require a financial structure capable of supporting it. The same applies to player remuneration. If the league is expected to become more competitive and professional, the welfare and earnings of the players also need to be part of the conversation.
This is why I think the discussion should go beyond whether the national league should simply become longer.
There are already competitions taking place outside the national league, and those efforts deserve recognition. Across different parts of the country, clubs, individuals and private sponsors have continued to organise competitions that give players opportunities to compete.
In Jos, the Rayfield Highflyers Invitational Volleyball Tournament has become one of the competitions contributing to the local volleyball calendar both within Jos and the middle belt region, attracting teams from Nasarawa, Bauchi and even Gombe.
In Lagos, Lekki Volleyball Club organises the Thunder Games, while Legacy Volleyball Club is also involved in providing competitive opportunities.
In Port Harcourt, Rivers State, the Shell MD/CCH Invitational Volleyball Tournament, organised by Shell Spikers, provides another platform for competition.
In Abuja, the FCT, there is the Abuja Invitational Volleyball Challenge organised independently by the Nigeria Park Volleyball Commission in partnership with private sports management agencies.
There are also other stakeholder-led competitions, cutting across indoor and outdoor and beach volleyball tournaments, like the Jos Beach Volleyball Fiesta powered by Anista.
These competitions are important because they show that the responsibility for developing volleyball is not resting entirely on the federation. People within the sport are already putting their own resources, time and relationships into creating opportunities for players and clubs.
The question, then, is how these different efforts can fit into a more consistent volleyball calendar.
The federation cannot realistically be expected to organise every competition at every level. State associations, regional structures, clubs, schools, universities, academies, sponsors and other private stakeholders all have roles to play. There is room for different competitions to exist at different levels without every one of them having to become another national league.
A young player who is not yet ready for the national league should still have somewhere to compete. An emerging club should have opportunities to test itself against other teams before taking on the country's established clubs. State associations should have regular competitions, while regional competitions can give clubs another level of exposure.
This is also where the conversation about academies and youth development becomes relevant. If we want to develop players for the future, we need to think about what happens between discovering a talented young player and that player eventually reaching the national league or national team. Training is important, but players also need regular competition to apply what they are learning.
Nigeria already has many of the pieces. There are clubs, state associations, school competitions, university teams, youth programmes and privately organised tournaments. The bigger challenge may be creating a clearer pathway between them and making the competition calendar more consistent.
This does not mean the national league should not be reviewed. There is clearly room to discuss its format, duration, scheduling, travel requirements, player welfare and financial sustainability. A stronger league would benefit everyone involved.
But making the national league longer is not necessarily the only way to give players more opportunities to compete. In some cases, strengthening competitions at state and regional levels may be more practical. In others, club-led and privately sponsored tournaments can fill gaps in the calendar.
The important thing is that these competitions should not exist only as isolated events. Where possible, they should contribute to a wider system in which players can move from one level of competition to another and clubs can grow gradually.
The poll has therefore raised a useful question, but I don't think the answer is simply that Nigerian volleyball needs more leagues. We need to look at the number of competitions available, the quality and consistency of those competitions, what clubs can afford, how players are supported and how the different levels of the sport connect.
There is already evidence that people are willing to invest in creating more opportunities. The next step is to see how those efforts can be sustained and connected to a broader competition structure.
So perhaps the question we should be asking is not just whether Nigerian volleyball needs more competitions but what kind of competition structure will give more players and clubs regular opportunities to play without creating an unsustainable financial burden.
That, in my view, is where the conversation should move next.
But what do you think?
What Does Nigerian Volleyball Need Right Now?
0%More leagues & tournaments
0%Extended league structure
You can vote for more than one answer.
I believe we need a better league structure. We need a better structure generally and to get that, we need to fix our finances. We need to raise money for this sport. More tangible resources that caters for the existing people we have now. Once we fix that, then we can determine if we need more leagues or maintain what we do have.
Well done
Even Benin Republic is doing league that runs for many months. I think clubs should also focus on monetisation, that's how they can raise funding. Then we can look at making the league with play-offs at regional or zonal levels. This should reduce the cost of travelling longer miles. Teams who emerge from their regions and zones can then advance to go and play final stages at the central levels. I think this can can work. This way we have a more active league with longer play time as well. Well done
Such an insightful read. ✨
Ace, keep it up 👏🏾