Sports
President Federation Cup: MKO Abiola Nat’l Stadium Hosts Finals 29 June
The grand finale of this year’s President Federation Cup men and women competitions have been billed for the MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja on Saturday, 29th June.
General Secretary, Nigerian Football Federation, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, said that the date has been agreed by both the NFF and GTI.
It was gathered that the two finals holding same was in view of the fact that Nigeria have until midnight of Sunday, 30 June to submit to the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the names of her representative clubs in next season’s continental club competitions.
Dr Sanusi said, “Having looked closely at our programmes, the stage the men and women competitions are at the moment and the need to submit the names of all our representative clubs to CAF for African Club Competitions next season, ourselves and GTI have reached a consensus for the grand finale of the men and women finals of the President Federation Cup to take place on Saturday, 29th June.
“The venue is the MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja. The women’s final will begin at 1pm while the men’s final will commence at 4pm, as has been the tradition for so many years now. NFF and GTI are committed to putting up a great show of this year’s grand finale.”
Meanwhile, the quarter-finals of the women’s competition will take place on Wednesday, 19th June, with Benin City, Asaba and Enugu as host centres.
The semi-finals of the men’s competition will take place on Thursday, 20th June, with Abuja and Lafia as host centres.
Tough Duels in Women’s Final Eight
Nasarawa Amazons go up against Remo Stars Ladies at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, in what is undoubtedly one of the potentially-explosive encounters of the quarter-finals of the women’s competition.
The girls from Ikenne have been following in the footsteps of their men’s team (Remo Stars FC) in chasing for honours this season, with the men’s team also firmly in the hunt for a CAF Champions League spot as the NPFL season rounds off next Sunday.
The Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium is also the venue for the clash between Delta Queens and Sunshine Queens, while FC Robo Queens of Lagos and Naija Ratels of Abuja clash in another tantalizing match-up in Asaba.
The Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu – where Enugu Rangers emerged champions of this year’s NPFL season on Sunday – is venue for the clash between Osun Babes and Rivers Angels.
Women’s Quarter-Final Fixtures
Nasarawa Amazons (Nasarawa) Vs Remo Stars Ladies (Ogun) – Benin City – 19/06/24 – 4pm
Naija Ratels (FCT) Vs FC Robo Queens (Lagos) – Asaba – 19/06/24 – 4pm
Delta Queens (Delta) Vs Sunshine Queens (Ondo) – Benin City – 19/06/24 – 1pm
Osun Babes (Osun) Vs Rivers Angels (Rivers) – Enugu – 19/06/24 – 4pm
Will Pillars stay strong as Warriors attack?
Inspired Abia Warriors will go all out for glory when they take on traditional powerhouse team and former winners Kano Pillars in one of the semi-final matches of this year’s President Federation Cup, at the Lafia City Stadium on Thursday.
The Aba giants struggled for several weeks in the relegation waters, but finally secured their Premiership status when they defeated Akwa United 2-0 in a Matchday 37 game on Sunday. They will approach the match in Lafia with very high impetus.
In the other semi-final, El-Kanemi Warriors are also highly inspired after securing promotion to the NPFL following the conclusion of the NNL Super 8 Tournament. The team has been promoted alongside Nasarawa United, Beyond Limits and Ikorodu City.
Their opponents are Kebbi United, who fear no foe, and have reached this stage by defeating higher-rated ABS FC of Ilorin, NPFL side Akwa United and EFCC FC of Abuja. It promises an interesting evening at the NFF/FIFA Goal Project on Thursday.
Tottenham Hotspur’s Europa League match against Qarabag has been postponed due to severe travel disruptions in London.
The announcement was made on the club’s official X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday evening.
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According to the statement, further details regarding the rescheduling of the match are expected to follow.
The post reads, “Kick off for tonight’s fixture has been delayed due to severe travel disruption. Further information to follow.
More to follow………
The draw for the fourth round of the Carabao Cup has revealed a series of thrilling matchups that are sure to capture fans’ attention.
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In a post on Wednesday night, the fixtures, which will see some of the top teams in English football go head-to-head, include:
Brentford vs Sheffield Wednesday
Southampton vs Stoke
Tottenham vs Manchester City
AFC Wimbledon/Newcastle vs Chelsea
Manchester United vs Leicester
Liverpool vs Brighton
Arsenal vs Preston
Aston Villa vs Crystal Palace
These encounters promise high-stakes action as clubs compete for a coveted spot in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Fans can look forward to a week of intense competition as these teams battle for advancement in one of England’s most prestigious cup competitions.
Though his interest in football remains high, his desire to buy into the English Premiership League (EPL) side, Arsenal Football Club has subsided.
This much, the President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Alh Aliko Dangote, shared with Bloomberg at a recent interview in New York.
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According to Dangote, his priority was completing the Dangote Refinery, when the opportunity to purchase the Gunners for a ‘cheap’ $2 billion presented itself.
Dangote told Francine Lacqua, that his desire to own the North London side was in the past, though he would continue to support the highflying EPL side.
He said, “I think that time has passed. The last time when we had this interview, I told you as soon as I finish with the refinery, I am going to try and buy Arsenal.
“But you know everything has gone up and the club too is doing very well. Arsenal is doing extremely well right now. That time, Arsenal wasn’t doing well.
“I think I don’t have that kind of excess liquidity to go and buy a club for $4 billion, so to speak and use it as a promotional something.
“But what I will do is to continually be the biggest fan of Arsenal. I watch their games anytime they are playing. So, I will remain a major supporter of Arsenal but I don’t think it makes sense today to buy Arsenal.”
On if he regretted not buying the football club value was lower, he said, “Actually, I regret not buying it before but you know my money was more needed in completing my project (the Dangote Refinery) than buying Arsenal. I would have bought the club for $2 billion but you know I wouldn’t have been able to finish my project. So, it was either I finish my project or go and buy Arsenal.”
Recall that Dangote had in 2020 disclosed his desire to buy the North London EPL side, after his $20 billion refinery.
With the Dangote Refinery done and functioning, it does appear, though that Africa’s richest man has now rested his ambition to take over at Emirates Stadium, owing to the higher valuation of $4 billion it now attracts.
He set up the Dangote Group — the largest conglomerate in West Africa — in 1981.
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