Abia State Commissioner for Sports and Youth Development, Sir Nwaobilo Ananaba, has announced that a secondary school student from the state has been invited for football trials by FC Barcelona. The disclosure was made during a press conference held at the Umuahia Township Stadium on Thursday.
The event also served to announce the commencement of the second edition of the Abia State Governor’s Secondary Schools Unity Games (ASGSSUG), scheduled to take place from July 29 to August 1, 2025.
According to the commissioner, the invitation by Barcelona is a major highlight of the state’s growing success in youth sports development. He further revealed that a Hungarian football agent visited the state in 2024 and returned to Europe with six students, three of whom remain under the agent’s supervision for ongoing sports opportunities.
“Our athletes have been doing very well in competitions both locally and internationally,” Ananaba said. “This is part of the fruits of our grassroots sports initiatives.”
He credited these achievements to the vision of Governor Alex Otti, whose mandate focused on identifying and nurturing young talent. The commissioner explained that upon assuming office two years ago, his ministry initiated sensitization campaigns across the 17 local government areas to boost youth participation in sports, starting from primary and secondary schools.
To support this vision, the ministry introduced two hours of physical education in schools, alongside inter-house and inter-school sports competitions. “The governor wants us to catch them young. We are introducing even less popular sports, as long as they can empower Abia youths,” Ananaba said.
The Unity Games, launched last year, have already begun to yield results. “At the 2024 National Youth Games, athletes discovered through the first edition of the Unity Games won 31 medals,” he proudly stated.
This year’s edition will again feature participants from all 17 LGAs and will be flagged off by Governor Otti at the Umuahia Township Stadium.
Ananaba assured that all preparations for the championship were complete and praised the efforts of committee heads and technical advisers, including Mr. Eric Asomugha and Mr. Francis Nwaubani.
He also noted that the state government is working to establish much-needed sports facilities such as swimming pools and tennis courts to further enhance youth development.
The State Director of Sports, Comrade Obioma George, added that during the 2024 games, the government funded accommodation and lunch for participants, while local government mayors covered breakfast and dinner. He confirmed that while they estimated about 1,000 participants for this year’s games, 780 had already registered.
