The FIFA U-17 World Cup tournament is well under way in Nigeria but not everything is going according to plan and officials from world football’s governing body have expressed concerns. The tournament has so far suffered from a lack of publicity, with low awareness of the event and over-priced tickets resulting in disappointing crowds.
The Nigerian local organizing committee has also struggled with preparing adequate training facilities and administering the areas of ticketing and accreditation.
In a late effort to bolster crowd numbers, tens of thousands of tickets were this week reportedly offered to fans by city officials in the capital Abuja, after embarrassing attendances at opening Group A matches there over the weekend.
Host and defending champion Nigeria beat Honduras 1-0 on Tuesday to record their first victory in the competition. The attendance at the Abuja National Stadium was up on crowds who witnessed Nigeria’s 3-3 draw with Germany on Saturday. Some 40,000 free tickets had been offered by local authorities for Nigeria’s second game but the crowd numbers were disappointing; the 60,000-capacity stadium was less than half full.
FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said the tournament organizers had received unprecedented assistance from FIFA to aid preparations. “This is undoubtedly the first time FIFA has put such a great deal of effort into helping the LOC achieve its objectives. FIFA has thrown all its weight behind the tournament,” he said.
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