The Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has announced plans to rename the iconic M.K.O. Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta, elevating its status to reflect the facility’s remarkable transformation.
Speaking during a press parley in the state capital, the governor suggested the edifice should now be known as the M.K.O. Abiola Sports Complex, following sweeping upgrades that have modernised and expanded the stadium’s facilities ahead of the 22nd National Sports Festival.
The name change, he explained, is not merely cosmetic but reflects the stadium’s evolution from a traditional football ground into a multi-sport, world-class arena.
“I was telling Mathematical Segun Odegbami earlier that it used to be called MKO Stadium. Today, it’s MKO Sports Complex, because it has evolved from just a stadium. Before, it just had a pitch and a track. Now it has everything. And it is world-class,” Governor Abiodun said.
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New era
The planned renaming comes amid an ambitious and ongoing sporting infrastructure revolution in Ogun State.
In preparation for hosting Nigeria’s premier multi-sport event—the National Sports Festival—the state government has invested heavily in upgrading facilities across the board.
The M.K.O. Abiola Stadium now boasts a newly laid ultra-modern tartan track, a fully re-grassed football pitch, a standard Olympic-sized swimming pool, and new tennis and handball courts.
According to the governor, these upgrades aim not only to host the festival but to reposition Ogun State as a national hub for sports development.
The governor noted that these investments are part of a broader commitment to youth engagement, talent development, and economic growth through sports.
“We believe sports is not just recreation. It is development. It creates jobs, builds discipline, and promotes unity,” he said.
A stadium with a rich history
Commissioned in November 1988, the MKO Abiola Stadium has long served as one of Nigeria’s most respected regional sporting facilities.
It has hosted major events such as the CAF Women’s African Cup of Nations finals, the Senior West African Football Union (WAFU) Championship, and numerous national and state-level competitions.
Over the years, it was home to teams like the Gateway Football Club and the now-defunct Abiola Babes International Football Club, which made waves in Nigerian football during the 1980s and early 1990s.
The legacy of M.K.O. Abiola
The stadium is named after the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (M.K.O.) Abiola, a revered business tycoon, philanthropist, and acclaimed winner of Nigeria’s annulled 1993 presidential election.
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Widely remembered for his contributions to democracy and development, the Late Abiola was also a passionate sports patron.
In addition to the Abeokuta facility, his name adorns Nigeria’s national stadium in Abuja, renamed M.K.O. Abiola National Stadium in 2019 by the Federal Government in recognition of his enduring legacy. Several other institutions and monuments across the country—ranging from schools to roads—also bear his name.
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