CEO of Remo Stars and Beyond Limits, Kunle Soname, has addressed the controversy in the Nigerian football community following the promotion of his feeder team, Beyond Limits, to the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), Soccernet.ng reports.
Beyond Limits secured their promotion by topping their Nigeria National League group with 7 points and a 3-2 victory over Nasarawa United.
This development has sparked questions about the potential conflict of interest, given that both Beyond Limits and Remo Stars are owned by Soname. Critics are concerned about the fairness of having both teams compete in the same top-flight league.
In a video shared by Nigerian journalist Sulaiman Adebayo, Soname defended his position, stating that he has not violated any rules and is fully aware of what is right and wrong. He cited examples within Nigerian football where teams with the same financiers compete in the same league.
“We know what is right, and we know what is wrong. For us, as far as Nigeria is concerned, examples are abundant. We have Abia Warriors and Enyimba competing in the same league, both financed by the Abia state government,” he said.
Soname further pointed out that the recent rebranding of the Nigerian FA tournament to ‘The President Federation Cup’ mirrors European top-flight leagues, where all teams, including feeder teams, compete together.
The Bet9ja owner argued that if this structure is acceptable in FA Cups, it should also apply to the league.
“FA Cups, Federations Cup, that is a tournament where everybody plays. Beyond Limits and Remo Stars both competed, and nobody stopped us. We even met in the semi-finals. Bendel Insurance and Bendel Feeders played in their finals. So I'm not sure we are running afoul of any law in Nigeria because if we were, we would have been stopped. All teams have their feeder teams, and they both play together in the FA cup,” he explained.
Watch the video here:
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There have been reports suggesting that while Remo Stars is owned by Soname, Beyond Limits is owned by his wife, Kemi Soname. However, this has not been confirmed by an official statement.
Next season, both clubs will compete in NPFL matches at the Remo Stars Stadium, akin to how AC Milan and Inter Milan share the San Siro Stadium.
