Tinubu Rewards Flamingos Players With N100m Savings Bonds Each After World Cup Triumph

President Bola Tinubu has rewarded Nigeria’s U-17 women’s national football team, the Flamingos, with Federal Government Savings Bonds worth N100m each following their historic triumph at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

The reward was announced on Wednesday by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, who received the players, coaches and other members of the delegation on behalf of the President during a special reception at the State House, Abuja.

Under the reward package, the team’s coach was also presented with a N100m savings certificate, while each member of the technical crew received N50m in cash.

The recognition followed the Flamingos’ historic achievement of becoming the first African team to win the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, marking a significant milestone for Nigerian women’s football and African football on the global stage.

Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, explained that the decision to reward the teenage players through long-term savings bonds rather than immediate cash payments was aimed at securing their financial future and encouraging responsible financial planning.

He said the arrangement would enable the players to benefit from accumulated interest over five years while continuing their education and football development.

Dikko said, “There is no need to flood them with money that can distort their career.

“So we are now giving them what we call an FGN savings bond for like five years. That savings bond comes at like 14, 12 per cent interest annually, meaning each of them will be adding like N1.1m plus monthly for the next five years, which is enough to look outside their education, to look outside their training, and then by the time those bonds mature, they are already adults.
“They can make a clear decision of what to do with their own money.”

He further explained that the investment structure was particularly appropriate because most members of the team were still minors, adding that the funds would become available to them when they reached a more mature stage of their lives.

“I don’t think there is any father that wants to give his 16-year-old, 15-year-old, N100m at this age.

“But you can invest for your 16-year-old so that at 20 they will have money to set their life.

“That’s basically what the president has done at this moment, which is unprecedented,” he said.

The NSC chairman added that the annual interest generated by the bonds would provide the players with a regular source of income to support their educational expenses, football training and family needs throughout the five-year investment period.

On the team’s future, Dikko said the retention of the coaching staff would depend partly on the number of players who remained eligible for the next FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup cycle.

He explained that players who had not exceeded the age limit could continue with the team, while those progressing to higher age-grade competitions could potentially move with their coach.
“We have to look at how many of these girls are still available for the next U-17.

“If more are still under that age, they can play the next one; better you keep the coach at this level. If they are moving to the U-21, better they go with their coach to do that,” he said.