Date: 2017-06-03

The Chairman Abubakar Bukola Saraki Football Club, Seni Saraki, says the five-year partnership deal between Puma, the global sports lifestyle brand, and his club has the potential of raising the profile of Nigerian football.

Seni, who stated this at the unveiling ceremony of the Puma/ABS jersey at Ilorin, the Kwara State Capital, said that the partnership involves the provision of a kit for members of the club as well as sponsorship of its activities by Puma.

He also stated that ABS is the first ever Nigerian top flight outfit to join Puma's portfolio of club kit sponsorship.

"It is the first of its kind partnership that represents the biggest football kit sponsorship in the history of the Nigerian Football League aimed at growing and developing sports in Nigeria.

"The partnership with Puma aligns with the club's vision for where the club is right now, and where they will be in the future. Puma is known for delivering top level results whilst being innovative, and this is what ABS Ilorin symbolises," the chairman said.

He further disclosed that ABS Ilorin is currently two years into the six-year plan set out by the current administration when the club was overhauled in 2015, saying that it is massively overachieving as it stands.

"The primary end-goal of the six-year plan is to represent Nigeria at the CAF Champions League, and do so by winning the NPFL. We also aim to promote the ABS FC brand not just throughout kwara State, but Nigeria as a whole, resulting in it being a commercially viable global brand."

The Brand Manager Puma, Persianas Retail Limited, Aderemi Adefolabi, on her part, noted that the partnership is in line with Puma's commitment to the growth and development of sports in Nigeria.

"ABS FC has shown potentials of being a great club not just in Nigeria, but also in Africa and this has informed Puma's decision to provide the necessary support for it to achieve its potentials.

"All over the world, Puma has show a strong commitment to the development of theround leather game and its sponsorship cuts across leading football clubs and national teams."

Meanwhile, the President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Amaju Pinnick, represented by Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau, also commended the management of ABS FC for the partnership, maintaining that NFF has concluded plans to sign new partnership agreement with a top corporate company to sponsor the federation cup in an effort to make the age long tournament more attractive.