The presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) for the 2027 general elections, Omoyele Sowore, has pledged that Nigeria will not miss any FIFA World Cup during his eight-year tenure if he is elected president.
Sowore made the promise on Saturday in Enugu while participating in the 2026 Enugu City International Marathon.
He said his administration would transform Nigeria into a major global sports hub, ensure consistent World Cup qualification, and develop other sporting disciplines to compete successfully at the international level.
The AAC candidate, who took part in the 10-kilometre race for the second time, said he returned to the event after being impressed by the organisation of the previous edition.
“Well, I came back because I was impressed with the first one and I have seen so far that the organisation is impressive,” he said.
He described road races as important for promoting healthy living, community development and youth engagement, and urged every state in Nigeria to organise such events.
Sowore noted, however, that a 10-kilometre race is not technically a marathon, clarifying that a full marathon is 42 kilometres while a half marathon is 21 kilometres.
According to him, sporting events improve health, build communities and create an intersection between sports and culture.
He added that sports could help Nigeria develop young people into global ambassadors while unlocking a significant economic opportunity.
“Most importantly, this is how to build young people to be global ambassadors of your country. There’s a big economy out there that is known as the sports economy. We call it the orange economy. It’s an economic model that, if well-developed, can bring more money than oil,” he said.
Sowore cited Brazil and Kenya as examples of countries that benefit significantly from sports, particularly football and long-distance running.
“Nigeria has 200 million people. I don’t know why we are not beating Kenya in all the long-distance races,” he remarked.
He promised that his administration would develop sports infrastructure and provide an enabling environment for athletes to excel across various disciplines.
“Nigeria will become a major sports hub for the world. It doesn’t matter which sports you are doing. I’m a swimmer too, by the way. I come from the Niger Delta region. I don’t know why we are not winning swimming medals. We have great runners,” he said.
Sowore also criticised the country’s sports administration, particularly the management of football, saying Nigeria has the talent to perform better internationally but has missed opportunities due to poor administration and inadequate support for athletes.
He described Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the World Cup as unacceptable and stressed that his government would ensure consistent qualification.
“We are supposed to be at the World Cup. If I’m president of Nigeria, we are not missing any World Cup for my eight years. I’ll make sure that happens.
"This is because we get the best and the most competent and we will provide the environment for sports to thrive in this country,” he stated.