One of the world’s best football referees, Damir Skomina is expected in Lagos, Nigeria as part of the partnership between Asisat Oshoala Foundation and United Kingdom-based Atiyio Sports Management to give Nigerian women who want to have a future in football an all-round knowledge of the round leather game.
One of the objectives of having Skomina in Lagos is to address the dearth of women referees in Africa starting from Nigeria.
The event, which can be likened to a football refereeing summit in Lagos is tagged: A Day with Damir Skomina- Teaching the Rules of the Game. It is scheduled to hold at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere from 14-20 November.
According to the programme of the visit of Skomina to Nigeria as sighted by P.M. EXPRESS, the renowned referee will pay a courtesy visit to the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the Elegushi, Oba Saheed Ademola Elegushi before the three days training session with the young aspiring referees at the Asisat Oshoala Foundation.
Skomina, a Slovenia former UEFA elite referee is coming to Nigeria with rich world-class credentials. Apart from being one of the Top 5 best football referees in the world, he has taken charge at several FIFA World Cup Finals, UEFA Champions League finals, European league finals, Super Cup finals and many other elite football tournaments in the world.
P.M. EXPRESS can report that on the entourage of Referee Skomina are Jonathan Endurance Odiri, former player of Julius Berger FC of Lagos, who is working as the Sports Director and Coordinator in Izola Football Club, a second division league team in Slovenia, now working with Damir Skomina and Prince Mattew, the CEO of Atiyio Sports Management UK.
Others are Dinko Jeličić, Former Croatia U-20 national team coach, Marko Krnjić, Coach of Izola Football Club in Slovenia, Marko Krnjić, one of the coaches of Izola FC and Romi Gasperini, one of the officials of Izola football club.
“We are coming to Lagos from 14 – 20 November for the referee training session and for the scouting programme. We would like to watch the national team game on 14 November,” said Jonathan Endurance.
An elated Asisat Oshoala, the captain of Nigeria’s Super Falcons described the visit of Damir Skomina as a blessing to women football in Nigeria, adding that not all women who are into the round leather game will be playing the game on the field as footballers.
“Well, the focus is to see how we can help give hope to a girl-child through sports and education. I must say that not all the footballers we train at Oshoala Foundation will be footballers just as Asisat, so we have decided to build some of the girls into picking up football refereeing and coaching as a career. Even those who want to play football will also be trained so that they can start now for them to have something to fall on after their playing career,” the African Women Footballer of the Year award winner said from her base in Spain.
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