Inadequate funding making KFA lose money to agents — Bako

Over 80 percent of the transfer fee paid for players trained and groomed by Kwara Football Academy (KFA) has continued to end up in the hands of football scouts and agents. The Director of KFA and Kwara Sports Commission (KSC), Alhaji Ibrahim Bako, disclosed this in Ilọrin during ‘Sports Hard Talk, a maiden news platform […]

Over 80 percent of the transfer fee paid for players trained and groomed by Kwara Football Academy (KFA) has continued to end up in the hands of football scouts and agents.

The Director of KFA and Kwara Sports Commission (KSC), Alhaji Ibrahim Bako, disclosed this in Ilọrin during ‘Sports Hard Talk, a maiden news platform created by Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Kwara State chapter.

He attributed the unfortunate situation to inadequate funding. 

According to him, KFA remains the only facility remitting revenue to the state government while the latter only get mere pittance as remittance from repatriations compared to what scouts take on players.

“Over 80 percent of the transfer money goes to scouts who facilitate trials and consequent sales of the academy products

“Where we need government funding is in the areas of the players’ selection for trials by scouts. 

“The scouts take over the responsibilities of these players, especially when they travel abroad. 

“So the academy only lives on a few percent that is left”. 

Giving an instance, the KFA boss said, “Some scouts came for two of our players who were Spain bound.

“If they move abroad, the scout takes 80 percent of whatever money that comes from their transfers 

“But if we had the money to sponsor the cost to the trials, we take 85 percent and the agent/scout takes 15 percent of the transfer money. 

“So the larger percentage of the money that should come to the academy goes to the agent,” Bako explained.