The Nigerian entrepreneur Nneka Ede’s acquisition of Portuguese third division side Lusitano Ginasio Clube has made her the first African woman to own a European football club. An announcement yesterday revealed she bought the 108-year-old club in June 2020.
“After months of negotiations with different entities,” it read, “an agreement has been reached with Mrs Nneka Ede, a sports enthusiast and entrepreneur from Nigeria, a country filled with people as passionate and fiery about football as us and which incidentally share the same green and white in their flags, towards the transfer of the ownership of the SAD to the latter that will help us in our mission to take Lusitano to the next level.”
“I am excited about this opportunity and I hope that this new chapter will deepen the already great sporting relation between Nigeria and Portugal,” Ede said, “and continue with the rich history of Lusitano club and provide a pathway for young talent to develop and shine through.”
The deal reportedly makes Ede the second Nigerian to purchase a European club after businessman Kunle Soname bought another Portuguese club, Clube Desportivo Feirense, in 2015.
