Nigerian Football
Old Faithful, Ehimiaghe Family, renews insurance policy with Bendel Insurance FC
It looks more like a life insurance policy when the family of one of Bendel Insurance’s unrepenting supporters, Israel Menson Ehimiaghe offered a gesture of support to one of Nigeria’s legacy football clubs.
The family of the late Israel Menson Ehimiaghe (Bamawo) has donated a million naira to Bendel Insurance.
The Ehimiaghes see their gesture as an attempt to support a club that their late father worked for and supported during his lifetime.
“Wherever our late father is, he is going to be saying: “Na me born dem.” Before his death in December 1979, the late Israel Menson Ehimiaghe was the branch manager of the now-defunct Bendel Insurance Company in their office in Auchi.
From great beyond, Ehimiaghe offers assistance to Bendel Insurance.
One of the children of the late super supporter of the Benin Arsenal, Cornelius Ehimiaghe stated: “My father was a Bendel Insurance football club supporter through and through.
“I grew up hearing the slogan nobody can win us, only Bendel. When my late father was alive, there were commemorative clothes, T-shirts, caps, and paper flags that celebrated our winning the 1972 and 1978 Nigeria Challenge Cup.
“Though I could not read properly in 1978, there was a pictorial football magazine that covered our 1978 FA Cup victory over Enugu Rangers. After my father died in 1979, I more or less inherited all these football memorabilia, as well as his transistor radio.”
“Furthermore, I recall that after we won the Nigerian league in 1979, my late father scouted a street football in Auchi, got the permission of the player (Aminu Momoh) parents, drove the player to Benin City in his 504 Peugeot car, and introduced the player to coach Alabi Assien.
“After a brief trial, the young midfielder was employed by Bendel Insurance FC. My father used to plan his travel to Benin around the weekends that the Benin Arsenal had their home matches.
“The last of the matches he watched his beloved Bendel Insurance FC play was the semi-final match of the Africa Cup Winners Cup against Cannon Sportiff of Yaoundé, at the Ogbe Stadium in Benin in November 1979.
“The match ended in a goalless draw which meant that the Benin Arsenal failed to make it to the final due to a suspected offside goal by Onguene Manga, two weeks earlier in Yaoundé.
“A few years ago, I told Coach Alabi Assien that my late father would not have died on 12/12/1979 if the Benin Arsenal had triumphed over Cannon Sportiff.
“Without fear or favour, my late father would have negotiated with the angel of death to come and pick him up a few weeks later, after Bendel Insurance FC would have won the 1979 Africa Cup Winners Cup. The rest is history.”
“Growing up without a father in the austerity/structural adjustment ravaged the 1980s was very tough.
“Our grandparents, some of my mother’s “super cousins,” Barrister Charles Adogah (SAN) and late Auntie T.M. Faleye were very supportive.
“My elder brother and I had to also put in some odd job shifts to ensure that we did not go to bed hungry. I started working in the civil service in Bendel State before I was eighteen years old.
“I never one daydream of going to the university. However, after more than five years in the unemployment queue, my mother got a nursing job in UNIBEN. This ensured that we just managed to survive the almost wasted 1980s.”
“As part of following the footsteps of his late father, Cornelius Ehimiaghe also paid a courtesy visit to coach Alabi Assien and had a few minutes’ chat with the Management and coaching staff of Bendel Insurance FC, where he commended their efforts in steering the Benin Arsenal from relegation waters.
“The Ehimiaghes also donated two hundred thousand Naira to the supporters’ club of Bendel Insurance FC. “Win, lose or draw, we are proud of our “Up Bendel identity.”
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Nigerian Football
Exciting Start to FCT FA Inter-Area Councils Women’s Tournament as AMAC, Kwali Secure Opening Day Wins
The much-anticipated FCT FA Inter-Area Councils Women’s Football Tournament kicked off in grand style, with impressive wins recorded by AMAC and Kwali in their respective opening fixtures on Thursday, April 10, 2025.
Organized by the FCT Football Association through its Women’s Football Committee, the tournament’s maiden edition is designed to promote talent discovery and gender inclusion in football across all six Area Councils.
In the opening fixtures, AMAC recorded a 2-0 victory over Bwari at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium Practice Pitch, while Kwali triumphed with a 9-1 win over Abaji at the Abaji Football Pitch.
Speaking as a special guest after the kick-off match at the Moshood Abiola Stadium, Kayode Adeniyi, General Manager of NTA Sports, lauded the initiative.
“This tournament is a bold and timely intervention in the effort to give the girl-child a voice through sport. What we are witnessing is not just football—it’s social impact, community building, and youth engagement rolled into one,” former Chairman of FCT SWAN said.
“Special commendation goes to Pat Ajuma Ayegba for her innovation and personal investment in girl-child talent development. Her passion and drive have not only birthed this historic tournament but have also revived the long-dormant FCT FA Women’s Football League. She’s changing the narrative.
“I also call on the media to throw their weight fully behind this initiative. These girls deserve the spotlight just as much as any other athletes.”
Patrick Bassey, FCT FA Board Member and Chairman of the Technical Committee praised the quality of play and emphasized the long-term vision.
“We saw not just goals today but glimpses of future stars. The FCT FA remains committed to building a strong foundation for women’s football through structured competitions like this. The technical team is closely monitoring talents that can progress to the league and national level,” Bassey said.
FCT FA Board member and chairman of the women’s football committee, Pat Ajuma Ayegba, expressed her pride in the successful kick-off.
“Today marks the beginning of a dream—to take football to every girl on every street and in every school,” the former footballer, who bankrolled the grants to the participating Area Councils, said.
“I’m proud of the dedication from our teams and grateful to the FCT FA and partners for believing in this vision. This tournament is just the first of many platforms we’re building for young girls to shine.”
The tournament will continue over the coming weeks with home-and-away fixtures across all Area Councils, with the top two teams progressing to the semi-final, culminating in a grand finale to crown the champions of this historic inaugural edition.
Action continues on Saturday as Bwari hosts Gwagwalada, while Abaji will be on the road again to face Kwali on the same day.
Two days later, Kuje will welcome Abaji, while AMAC will be guests to Gwagwalada—both matches are scheduled for Monday, April 14.
Opening Day Results:
- AMAC 2–0 Bwari (Venue: Moshood Abiola Practice Pitch)
- Abaji 1–9 Kwali (Venue: Abaji Football Pitch)
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The Unity Cup last played in 2004 is resuming this year featuring Nigeria, Jamaica, Ghana as well as Trinidad & Tobago.
It was at the Unity Cup that Obafemi Martins debuted for Nigeria in a 3-0 defeat of Ireland on 29 May 2004 and became a scoring debutant.
The Unity Cup used to be an invitational tournament for countries with large diasporas in London. Nigeria won the last edition.
The competition is resuming after all formalities were done on Wednesday for the event.
It will be held at the 17,250-capacity Gtech Community Stadium in Brentford, West London in the last days of May 2025.
Rotimi Pedro, of AfroSport, said: “We are proud to bring back The Unity Cup. It’s been a long journey to revive this important community event, and we’re delighted that fans of African and Caribbean football will once again enjoy top-tier international football at Unity Cup 2025.
“We are grateful to Brentford FC for providing a home at the Gtech Community Stadium and look forward to what, even after 20 years, remains a cultural moment for many who attended previous Unity Cup tournaments.
“Unity Cup 2025 is a week-long celebration of our interconnected culture in food, music and comedy anchored around elite footballing talents from our home nations.”
The tournament will kick off with the first semi-final on Tuesday, 27th May as Trinidad & Tobago tackle Jamaica in the first-ever ‘Trini-Jam’ on UK soil.
The following day, three-time African champions Nigeria will take on four-time African champions Ghana in the second semi-final, which will come with all the intrigues and elements of a 74-year rivalry between the two continental giants.
All four teams will return on Saturday, 31st May for the grand finale, with the losers of the semi-final fixtures featuring in the third-place game, before the Final to determine The Unity Cup 2025 champions.
President of NFF, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, said: “We signed on to the tournament as it offers a vital opportunity for our team to bond ahead of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in September. The Unity Cup has a special history, and the Super Eagles have always been part of that journey.”
Super Eagles Head Coach, Eric Chelle, noted that “we’re looking forward to taking part in the Unity Cup as it will give us the chance to try out a few new players in different roles, helping us to strengthen our squad before the matches in September and October,” team captain William Troost-Ekong said: “This is a great tournament for us to reunite and continue strategizing for the upcoming World Cup qualifying games.”
Marcus Gayle, Brentford FC ambassador and former Jamaican international, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome the Unity Cup back and to host it here at the Gtech Community Stadium.
“This tournament will not only showcase elite football talent from Africa and the Caribbean but also celebrate the deep cultural and sporting ties between these regions. It’s a brilliant platform for players to shine, and we’re excited about the entertainment and community spirit the tournament brings.”
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Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) are to pay a fine of N3million and another N2million to Ikorodu City for damages to their bus following security breaches that resulted in attack on. Ikorodu City contingent. Fans have also been indefinitely restricted from gaining access to Shooting Stars home games.
The incident occurred at the end of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) Matchday 32 at the Lekan Salami Stadium leading to a disciplinary panel sitting on Wednesday
The Ibadan Club was found guilty of all three count of failure to provide adequate security, failure to ensure proper conduct of their supporters resulting in attack on the opponents and throwing of objects to the field of play and the Referees.
For failure to provide adequate and effective security which resulted in unauthorized persons gaining access to restricted areas and harass the match officials, Shooting Stars were fined N1million.
The second charge read, “You are in breach of Rule C9 of the Frameworks and Rules of the Nigeria Premier Football League, in that on Sunday, 06th April 2025, in the course of Match Day 32 Fixture: Shooting Stars vs. Ikorodu City, you failed to ensure the proper conduct of your supporters, which resulted in the assault on the away team supporters”.
The Disciplinary panel ordered a fine of another N1m and on the third charge of not controlling their fans, they are to also pay N1m.
For breach of Rule B13.18,as a result of their supporters throwing objects toward the field of play and the match officials, Shooting Stars will pay N1million, bring to total to M3million in addition to N2m to be paid for damages to Ikorodu City bus.
According to the ruling, the panel ordered the closure of the Lekan Salami Stadium to fans for the rest of the season.
Shooting Stars, under Rule C26, is required to within 48 hours, indicate acceptance of the ruling or elect to appeal the decisions.
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Old Faithful, Ehimiaghe Family, renews insurance policy with Bendel Insurance FC
Exciting Start to FCT FA Inter-Area Councils Women’s Tournament as AMAC, Kwali Secure Opening Day Wins
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