He lives on the same street that Fela Anikulapo-Kuti once did, and his house is an edifice to behold. With a Mercedes G wagon and petite Smartcar in the driveway, it is easy to say that Victor Ikpeba truly lives the life of a football star.
Dreadlocks, Fast Cars and Sex Appeal
Victor has a full head of neat, shoulder length, micro-dreadlocks, a look he has stuck to for the past seven years. “I’m not a lady, so I try to take care of it once in a while, try to look neat. If I hadn’t been cutting it over the years I’m sure it would have grown past my waist. I just decided to have a different look.”
But he is no Rastafarian though he sympathises with their ways of thinking and especially their music. Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and the other great reggae musicians had a tremendous impact on his music taste in childhood. “Their music really touched many of us growing up and it is just fun having dreadlocks, nothing special.”
Victor is quite the snazzy, handsome gentleman. Everything from his French accent and sweeping dreads, exudes an understated sex appeal, highlighted by his simple, yet keen, fashion sense. “I try to dress smart. I like to wear Prada, Cavalli and other Italian designers but the simpler the better.”
His house is an extension of his fashionable taste — marble floors, and high ceilings with crystal chandeliers. His two living rooms showcase rows and rows of books and movies, medallions and trophies adorning the black and white leather interior of his home.
Pure simplistic elegance
He has paintings on his walls, gifts from fans and pictures of his family and late wife, Atinuke. A touching stone memorial sits at the front of the house in memory of his wife, who lost her battle with cancer some nine years ago.
He is something of an adrenaline junkie. He has a gym in his house, where he routinely works out, twice a week for about an hour to ensure he doesn’t get the retired football player big belly. He spends time on the stair-master, the elliptical and the power treadmill and occasionally some weight training.
Apart from his first love, football, he likes to play tennis, Moto GP and Formula 1. “These are things I really got into when I was in Monaco — fast cars and fast motorbikes.”
Old Football Memories and Friends
He has won several awards in his time, including the African player of the Year in 1997, as well as winning the Nations Cup in 1994 and the Olympics in 1996, with the Nigeria team. “It is one of the greatest experiences a player like me could have ever had.”
As a retired player he claims not to miss playing the sport much. He doesn’t even have a football in his house!
He has played for teams such as Monaco and Libya (something he describes as a “crazy experience,” but would not elaborate on why) finally ending his career in Belgium. “My first club was very important to me. Without FCH, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to play in Monaco which I thought really brought me into the limelight. That was the best period of my career and I will always be grateful for RCF Liegeois.
"I think without them I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to play with other great clubs like Borussia Dortmund, Real Betis, AS Monaco... It was a great experience to play with these traditional big clubs in Europe.” He tries to stay in touch with his former team members but admits it can be hard at times.
“In our playing days it was much easier to keep in touch with my football friends. Footballers as teammates see themselves everyday every week and it is easier to spend time together, but footballers like to have private lives. So when you meet in public or at a gathering you bring those old memories back and have good times.”
Friends like Thierry Henry, Jay Jay Okocha, Samson Siasia and Ben Onuoha. “We had lost contact with ourselves for some time and the MTN match from three weeks ago brought some of us back together again.”
He’s Not a Player, He’s a Family Man
He spends a lot of time in Nice, France, with his four daughters and fiancée. He has a 16-year-old, an 11-year-old, a six and three-year-old; none of them show any interest in football. He is a licensed FIFA Agent, taking time out to scout for new Nigerian talent.
He recently took part in assembling the draws for the 2009 Under-17 World Cup. “I go around the country looking for talented players, giving them an opportunity to have a better future playing overseas, and give them trials if they are good enough.” He has a weekly television show he’s working on counting down to the 2010 South African World Cup.
So what would he have been if he hadn’t pursued his dreams of becoming a football player? “I would have to go back 20 years ago. It would have been a tough call but when I was in Yaba Tech I was studying business administration so I would have ended up working in one of these financial institutions. But my destiny changed but I think I could have loved working in those areas.”
God is his role model and as a young man he looked up to the likes of Pele and George Weah, who set the standards and opened doors for players like him to make football a lucrative career in Europe.
Believe in yourself
Some words of advice for any and all who are in pursuit of their dreams: “If you believe in yourself and you want to live your dream, you have to work hard for it and with determination and seriousness so you can get there. There is no looking back. If you want to get to the top you must work hard at getting to the top.”