1st March, 2013
After a successive improvement in the standard of female basketball in the country, Zenith Bank Nigeria Plc has increased its sponsorship funds for the 2012/2013 Zenith Bank Female Basketball League.
Zenith Bank, who has been the sponsor of the competition for the past eight years, presented a cheque of N20m to the leadership of Nigeria Basketball Federation, NBBF as against N6m they doled out last season. The 2012/2013 season will dunk off on 23 March in three centres, Abuja, Asaba and Lagos.
Acting General Manager, Zenith Philanthropy, Marcel Okereke, said the increment in the sponsorship funds is to motivate the federation to improve on the organisation of the league as well as to boost the competition.
“The league was formerly made up of 10 teams, but now has 16 teams registered across the country, which I think is highly impressive,” he said.
Okereke added that the need to accommodate the additional teams in the league necessitated the upward review of the funding.
Murktah Khaleh, Vice-President of NBBF, said that the league is still developing, adding that the federation is working hard to ensure there is continuous improvement in the league.
—Bamidele Olowosagba