Mikel Obi Describes How he Had to Cover the Cost of the Nigerian Team's Airfare to the Olympics in Rio After the NFF and NOC Refused to Pay.

Mikel Obi, a former Nigerian international footballer and now a podcast host, has revealed that he almost missed the opportunity to represent his country at the Rio Olympics in Brazil due to issues within the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC).

Speaking on the One Obi podcast, Mikel shared that despite financial guarantees from the government and the FA, he was still forced to cover the team’s airfare.

“When I represented my country at the Olympics in Brazil, we had to fly there, and we waited from morning till night, waiting for a plane to take us to Brazil,” Mikel recounted.

“There was no plane to take us to Brazil because there was in-fighting behind the scenes over who was going to pick up the tab."

Mikel explained that the situation arose from a conflict over financial responsibilities. "The FA didn’t want to pick up the tab, the government, I think, released the money, but the FA or whoever the money got into his hands refused to release the funds,” he said.

As a result, Mikel took matters into his own hands to ensure the team could travel. "So we waited at the airport from morning till night, but there was no flight. I had to pay for that flight to take us to Brazil. And these are little things,” he added.