Nigeria Sports Arena

The Management of Nationwide League One club based in Ekiti State, Olukismet Football Club has agreed to release Etiti Solomon to Vandrezzer FC. In a statement signed by the Secretary of the club Ogundipe Abiodun Bright, issues surrounding ownership of the said player has been resolved amicably between Olukismet and A & A Sports Club.  "A & A Sports Club and Olukismet FC have jointly agreed that Etiti Solomon should be released from Olukismet to play for Vandrezzer FC while both clubs would share proceeds from the transfer amongst ourselves when they become payable by Vandrezzer FC" The statement went further to state that a release made earlier after the unveiling of the player was not intended to cast aspersions on the integrity of Vandrezzer FC but an attempt to set the records straight which has led to an amicable settlement of issues surrounding the bona-fide owner of the player. "We are definitely encouraged by what Vandrezzer FC are doing and we are glad t

The Nigeria Hockey Federation has released a list of 60 invited athletes (men & women) and its coaching crew in preparation for the Africa Cup of Nations. The Hockey teams' have resumed camp in Abuja in preparation for the Africa Cup of Nations scheduled for Accra, Ghana on, January 17th – 23rd, 2022. Nigeria will be hoping to improve its standing globally when it attends the 11th Men and 8th Women edition of the Africa Cup of Nations following a successful outing by its club sides at the Africa Cup for Club Champions held 23rd -30th November 2021.   The participating teams for men include – Egypt, Ghana (host), Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa (defending champions) and Uganda.   The Women will feature – Ghana (host), Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa (defending champions), Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.   The men’s team have two pro-players (Tosin Fowobaje & Wale Ajibua) who ply their trade in Italy. Other invited athletes are from the National League side Kada Star

African Pillar of Sports and Forbes rated Billionaire,  Orji Uzor Kalu has called on the Nigeria Football Federation(NFF) to quickly find a replacement of Super Eagles Coach Gernot Rohr over poor performance . In a post he shared on his verified Facebook and Instagram accounts,  Kalu said Nigerian soccer lovers don't need further dissatisfaction from the performance of the coach.  He disclosed he refused to employ Rohr as Enyimba coach in 2003  because he didn't have enough coaching skills to win trophies  He wrote :  "In the last five years we have wasted our time in football.  There is nothing new we are doing any longer .To see a country with many professional players home and abroad struggling to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations  and World Cup is heartbreaking.  Gernot Rohr is  not a good coach and I don't understand why he is still managing Super Eagles.   When I Was Governor,  he applied to become  employed as Enyimba coach. He was brought to Nigeria by Osca

  He is a man that will be remembered for his many legacies even while in office. He starts what others never thought of. In just under 3 years of his administration, Sports minister Sunday Dare has broken records and has given stakeholders too many to remember.  His staff call him Mr Record Breaker, his admirers call him Mr Achiever, his colleagues call him the pacesetter, his bosses call him the silent achiever and some others just love to call him the BRAINBOX.  Welcome to the World of Sunday Akin Dare. A man who has continued to thrive where others failed.  Today, this reporter has taken time to highlight FIVE of Sunday Dare's outstanding achievements. These are five of the best. The very best. Read along.  1. *THE NATIONAL YOUTH CONFERENCE*. For the very first time in the history of Nigeria youth and sports Ministry, there came a minister who has decided to create a platform for Nigeria youths to air their views, state their grievances and be heard by their leaders. On Wednesd

Substitute Azeez Ajagbe netted a late goal as Sunshine Stars defeated Smart City 1-0, while 36 Lion and Ottasolo FC drew 0-0 on the opening day of the 2021 Ottasolo Pre Season Tournament at Legacy Pitch on Monday. Sunshine Stars have a much-changed squad for the tournament but managed to seal a narrow victory in a game of few chances. Hadi Mohammed criminally missed a begging opportunity for Stars late in the first stanza. Smart City also threatened, but it was Owena Whales who took the lead few minutes from time. Ajagbe managed to get his strike beyond the Smart City keeper in the 85th minute. Meanwhile, Ottasolo FC and 36 Lion played out a 0-0 draw earlier in the day. Ottasolo were reduced to 10 men when Hammed Egbedeyi received a deserved red card. But 36 Lion didn't make their numerical supremacy count as both sides shared the spoils.  Action continues on Tuesday when two games would be played. Lobi Stars are up against Yobo FC in the first clash (9am) and both sides will be ea

  The Coordinator of the Organizing Committee of the 2021 Ottasolo Pre Season Tournament, Mallam Badawiy Bashir has asserted that the objective is to ensure that the tournament becomes the best pre-season competition in Nigeria. The competition has been scheduled to take place from November 1 to 7 in Lagos.  Badawiy who is also the General Manager of Kwara United confirmed that 10 teams will take part in its maiden edition. The Organizing Committee Coordinator noted that the objective is to make the Ottasolo Pre Season Tournament the best in Nigeria.  He stated that aside the pre season matches that will keep the participating teams busy and for them to gauge their preparations for the commencement of the league season, the first edition of the Ottasolo Pre Season Tournament will have some side attraction.  "I am delighted to inform you that 10 teams have shown interest to attend the maiden edition of the Ottasolo Pre Season Tournament," Badawiy informed the Media.  "We

Kola Daniel explains the essence of Ottasolo Pre-season Tourney; confirms participating teams Partner, Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament, Kola Daniel has stated that all modalities have been put in place for a hitch-free tournament holding at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan, Lagos as from November 1st. He confirmed that the final two weeks to the start of the maiden edition of the tournament is being used to finalize all arrangements and ensure that even though the Ottasolo Pre-season Tourney is only in its debut, it would still rank among the best organized pre-season tournaments. Daniel, who is a media aide to the Minister of Youth and Sports confirmed the participation of Niger Tornadoes, Gombe United, Lobi Stars, Sunshine Stars, 3SC, Kwara United, and Remo Stars. "It has been two weeks of intensive preparation aimed at trying to package the first of its kind pre-season tournament in Nigeria named Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament that is going to take place in Lagos," Daniel

Former Governor of Abia state and Pillar of Sports in Africa, Dr Orji Kalu has described the victory of Enyimba Football Club at the Confederation of Africa (CAF) competition as well-deserved and commendable. The former Governor, under whose administration Enyimba FC won the CAF competition in 2003 and 2004, stressed that sports is a unifying game, adding that government at all levels must support grassroots sports development for the sake of national development. While applauding the Enyimba team for their show of professionalism and dexterity, called for the sustenance of the performance of the football team in future competitions. In a goodwill message to the football team, the soccer enthusiast noted that the players and officials of the team deserve commendation for their outstanding performance in the competition. He said" I join football lovers across Abia state and Nigeria in general to celebrate the well deserved victory of Enyimba Football Club against Diambars FC in the

A Nigerian sports journalist, Olatoye Olawale has bagged the prestigious ‘Outreach award’ from the Nigeria Soccer Federation, United States of America (NSF-USA). Olawale, who is the Director, Sportflames Communications and NSF-USA Coordinator in Nigeria, was awarded for his efforts in the development of grassroots football in the country as well as his efforts in distributing COVID-19 relief materials to about 400 grassroots players in Lagos in a bid to cushion the effects of the Covid-induced economic crisis on the players. Speaking on the award, Olawale expressed his profound gratitude to the leadership of the Nigeria Soccer Federation-USA for conferring the award on him the prestigious award, He also appreciated all those who have contributed to his dream and success over the years for their support, encouragement and guidance. This was contained in his appreciation statement. The statement reads, “ I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to Nigeria Soccer Federation for this Award, sincerely

  On Thursday September 30th, 2021, Gymnastics in Africa most populous black nation, Nigeria, was officially nailed to the coffin as the incumbent president, Kelvin Ehizogie, emerged president of the federation for another four year term Emerging from the blues in 2016, Kelvin used his financial muscle and top government connections to bamboozle delegates and won a keenly contested election albeit, on controversial circumstances.  The process was hijacked at some point but it took the intervention of former sport Minister, Solomon Dalung, to restore sanity as Kelvin emerged victorious in an Election rerun against stakeholders favorite, Moyo Ogunseinde, in Abuja.  Since becoming president of the federation, Kelvin has concentrated more on his personal businesses that are scattered across Europe and North America as the sport of Gynastics, struggle to catch up with reality.  As .part of his pre election manifesto in 2016, Kelvin promised to focus more on grassroots development while also

Former Governor of Abia State and Chief whip of the 9th Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, has received an award from the Chartered Institute of Project Managers of Nigeria (CIPMN). The distinguished Senator was honoured with an "Honorary Fellowship Award" in Abuja.  Senator Orji Uzor Kalu received the prestigious award on Thursday afternoon at the International Conference Centre, Abuja Senator Uzor Kalu's giant strides during his short time in the Senate has not gone unnoticed. During this period, he has started and completed several projects, including the renovation of schools in his constituency and reconstruction of dilapidated roads. The sports-loving Senator is also a strong voice in the Senate and his constituency can affirm that he is an icon of development. These giant strides has earned this award and deservedly so by the man who made Enyimba become a world class brand. During his tenure as Governor, he helped Enyimba win the CAF Champions League and Super Cup bac

Indigenous oil and gas company, Optima Energy are now the new sponsor of Nigeria's prestigious Pre-Season Tourney Ogunjobi Gold Cup. Tunde Shamsudeen, the General Coordinator of the tournament made known of the deal on Wednesday. "It's another feather to our cap as we are very proud to announce Optima Energy Resources as our official sponsors. "The sponsorship is a reward for our hard work over the years as the Ogunjobi Gold Cup has become a brand to the affiliate within Nigeria's domestic football," Shamsudeen said. Optima Energy Resources Limited is an indigenous petroleum downstream marketing company having an ultra-modern white fuels depot in Koko, Delta State that is strategically positioned to serve the energy needs of the economy. With over 50 and a growing number of petrol retail outlets that are meticulously positioned in almost all the geological zones of the country, Optima Energy Resources Limited is the preferred Energy choice availing the right

  Ottasolo FC chairman, Otunba Gabriel Davies who is also the brain behind and sole financial of Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament that is set to take place in Lagos has declared his readiness to host the best of NPFL teams in Lagos. While speaking with Ottasolo Media, the former Stationary Stores FC of Lagos said, "Yes, we have decided to organize a Prestigious pre-season tournament tagged "Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament" first of its kinds in the city of Lagos.  "We have put every necessary modality in place to prove our readiness to host the best of NPFL teams in the city of Lagos. He declared Talking about the reason behind this Pre-season tournament Otunba Gabriel said; "We have put this together in order to promote football and at the same time to provide an avenue for our NPFL teams that are already gearing up preparations to have a befitting competition ahead of the forthcoming NPFL season.

Ten clubs have been pencilled down for the maiden edition of Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament scheduled to hold at Soccer Temple, Agege Stadium from 23-31 October, 2021.   According to Kola Daniel,    the quartet of Shooting Stars, Kwara United, MFM FC and Sunshine Stars and seven other clubs in the Nigerian Leagues have signified interests in the tournament. These clubs have engaged in aggressive players recruitments in the last few months and have been fine-tuning preparations for the league.  The Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament will be a major avenue to test how they are shaping up as it promises lots of thrills. "We are good to go as far as organising this competition is concerned.  “Lagos is in good shape and the good people of Agege await with excitement from the top clubs," Kola Daniel told Ottasola Media. Lagos is a major national football hub, hosting big international football matches and competitions. "Fans should be ready for good football at the Soccer Temple i

The maiden edition of the Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament will be held in Lagos for top football teams in Nigeria. According to the Coordinator of the Tournament, Kola Daniel the event is meant to prepare teams for the 2021/2022 season. The highly respected media practisioner said the competition is aimed at helping to prepare them adequately for the new campaign and give them the opportunity to assess all their new recruits. He said 23rd to 30th October has been proposed for the competition at Agege Stadium. Mr Gabriel Davies is the financier of the Ottasolo Pre-season Tournament. He is the Proprietor of Ottasolo International Football Club, a team that will participate in the Nigeria National League next season. The beauty of Pre-season matches and competitions in Nigeria includes having teams play in superb atmospheres where the players and clubs have a more conducive ambiences to show how good they are. Pre-season games offer fans the opportunity of glimpsing the true quality of pl

Minister of Youth and Sports  Development  Mr  Sunday Dare  has re affirmed the commitment of the FG to the development of women football in Nigeria.  The Minister gave the assurance during the draws of the maiden edition of the Betsy Obaseki women football tournament  held in Benin on Sunday. The Betsy Obaseki women football tournament is sponsored by the First Lady of Edo State, Mrs Betsy Obaseki as her own contribution to the development of the game in the country alongside the private sector.   According  to the Minister, "This competition is a re-affirmation of the important place of women's football in our country and also an attestation  of the status of Edo State as the home of Football in Nigeria.  "Coming just a few days after Nigeria successfully hosted the  the First Lady, Dr.  Aisha Buhari Cup in Lagos only confirms Nigeria's leading role in women football on the continent and the importance  attached to the development  of the girl child." The Minis

Sunday Dare, the Youth and Sports Development Minister has poured encomiums on Nigeria's senior women basketball team- D'Tigress for their victory at the 2021 Afrobasketball championships in Cameroon. The Nigerian ladies, now African queens of the court, captured their third consecutive Afrobasketball championships title on Sunday after beating Mali by 70-59 in the final. The performance of D'Tigress was so dominant all through the championships that many bookmakers had tipped them to retained their crown even before today's final. An elated Sports Minister Sunday Dare said Nigeria's victory is confirmation of her dominance of the sport in Africa. "Clearly now Nigeria's dominance of the sport is indisputable. This is the evidence that Nigeria's women basketball can be ranked as a World class programme. We have to sustain this momentum. This is remarkable, winning the Afrobasketball Championships for an unprecedented third time. "I salute the team(D

Former president of the Nigeria Judo federation, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has decided to pull out of the race to become president of the Weightlifting federation of Nigeria. This decision was reached after due consultation with friends who advised him to pull his weight behind another contestant, Lawrence Iquaibom, a former commonwealth champion in the sport.  As Africa Pillar of Sports, Kalu reckons that he needs to play the big brother role to a former Olympian who has indeed invested his passion and money into developing the sport at state and National level and should not be seen as an elder who wants to reap where he has not sowed.     "My intention was clear from the onset. I wanted to return Weightlifting to where it used to be. This is one sport that can give us medals at major international competitions. Everyone know what i achieved as president of the Nigeria Judo federation and now, as Chief Whip of the Nigeria Senate, i thought I could support Weightlifting, as part of

Defending champions, Kwara State Internal Revenue Services, KWIRS will have to use many tax collecting skills if they are to retain this year's Independent Cup.  KWIRS and five other teams, including Kwara State chapter of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, SWAN, Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, First Bank Plc and Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC will be participating in the football and Table Tennis events which is expected to start on Tuesday, 28th of September.  The preliminaries stages will be decided on 30th of September while the final will be played on Independence Day which is Friday, 1st of October at the Indoor Hall of Kwara State Stadium.  The competition aimed to celebrate Nigeria Independence and to emphasize the importance of freedom to people is organized by Phreestyle Sport Limited and supported by Kwara State Sports Commission. The Brain Behind Phreestyle Sport Limited, Shogo Shodunnke told sports writers in Ilorin

    Former U-17 attacking midfielder Akinkunmi Amoo, has been rewarded for his fantastic display on match day 20 of the Swedish Allsvenkan, after being named player of the week, in the match against Goteborg on Thursday night.    The 19-year-old was in a league of his own, producing series of fine display for the host as he scored once and assisted another to help    his side secure a vital    3-0 win over Goteborg; a performance which caught the eyes of series of renowned media outlets in sweden and europe at large.   According to Sweden based media outfit Discovery+ Sport, the performance of the 19-year-old was enough to name him the best player, as his all round display was a joy to watch.   “After being outside of the starting eleven for a period, Amoo is back with a message against IFK Goteborg. It was a goal, an assist and there were other contributions. For the fine and match-deciding effort, the Hammarby player is the player of the round" says Discovery + Sport   The forme

Former Flying Eagles and AS Trencing explosive winger, Ahmad Ghali has revealed that he is ready for the next Slovak Super Liga challenge, against FK Pohronie    coming up tomorrow, at the Futbalovy Stadion Ziar nad Hronom. AS Trencin manager, Peter Hlinka,has included Ghali in tomorrow’s squad for the matchday nine of the ongoing Slovakian Super Liga, against bottom-placed team, Pohronie. Speaking ahead of the game which he described as a difficult game, the 21-year-old attacker said that he is ready to help his team overcome Pohronie, who he believes can be dangerous on their days. “Tomorrow game against Pohronie will be difficult game in their Stadium, even though they are in the last position but they are good opponents boths defensively and offensively. “As a team, we have really worked hard this week to be ready for the game and we are ready to give everything tomorrow and win the game.” Since he made his Fortuna Liga debut for Trencin against Pohronie on 13 June 2020, after his

  Nigerian International, Stephen Odey, bagged another brace    against Fremad Amager yesterday in the third round of the Danish Cup, as he helped Randers FC progress to the next phase of the competition. Danish Cup defending champions, Randers FC continued from where they stopped over the weekend, where they recorded a 3-2 victory over FCNordsjaelland in the league, with another 3-2 triumph in the Danish Cup on Wednesday evening, at Sundby Indraestpark Stadium. Odey netted the first goal of the match, 15 minutes after the hosts opened the scoresheet, and completed his second brace for Randers in his fourth appearance in their colours on 45 minutes. The KRC Genk striker, who is on loan to the Horses with an option to buy at the end of the season, is looking forward to another remarkable outing this weekend, as his team set to host Danish Superliga top side, FC Midtjylland at the MCH Arena.

  Former Golden Eaglet winger Akinkunmi Amoo has revealed that he is not a player shy of scoring with his head after his 5th league goal earned Hammarby IF, a hard fought 1-0 victory over    Varbergs, on Monday night. The 19-year-old headed home from a Astri Slimani cross, despite not been the tallest in the field with the attacker showing great skills and composure to score his only goal, of the keenly contested match.  Speaking to the club media after the match,    heroic Akinkunmi Amoo, expressed confidence in his ability to score more goals with his head; But laughed off suggestions that,    his hight could limit him to score more goals with his feat, than his head.  “If you watch the game from the beginning, I headed a lot of balls, so it doesn't mean when you are short you can’t head ball accurately. I timed balls well against Varbergs and went for it,” Amoo added.  The tricky winger went on,    to also praise his side spirited efforts in the game whilst also hailing his coac

On Thursday, 23rd September, the Honourable Minister for Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare, will deliver a keynote address at the 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) High-Level Side Event on Social Business, Youth and Technology. The address, which will be delivered virtually, will focus on "Social Business Towards a Sustainable Revival of Post-Covid 19 Economy." The Minister is expected to draw on his extensive wealth of experience in engaging with young business owners, investors, entrepreneurs and innovators across the African continent and beyond. This is the second time in two years that Mr. Dare has been asked to speak at this particular high-level event. In his keynote address at the 74th UNGA, he said the Youth in Africa’s biggest nation, Nigeria, are in a position to help solve major challenges of the world. He added that Nigeria will rely increasingly on its Youth population to develop smart products and solutions to conquer the challenges and pr

  Former Golden Eaglets forward Akinkunmi Amoo was the match hero for Swedish side Hammerby IF as he scored the game’s only goal to earn his team a 1-0 win over Varbergs BoIS. Still smarting from the shock 4-1 loss in their last league outing away at Djurgadens, head coach Milos Milojevic rang in the changes with Amoo returning the starting XI having sat out last week’s embarrassing loss. The 19-year-old hit the ball running from the blast of the whistle and was involved in the game’s first real chance when he combined with Astri Slimani to set up skipper Bojanic but the midfielder failed to keep his effort on target.   The visitors then grew into the game and had chances of their own twice but the hosts goalkeeper was up to the task as he kept his cool to keep the game goalless after the hour mark.   With the half time whistle seconds away, the tricky Nigerian opened scoring as he robbed defender Joakim Linder off the ball before setting up Selmani who then crossed graciously to the h