Sports
Group Plan To Discover Africa next football stars
The Game On Afrika Tournament is seeking to discover and nurture Africa’s next generation of football stars through a groundbreaking U-19 competition that will bring Nigeria and Ghana into a direct footballing contest.
Organisers of the tournament, powered by Afreximbank, unveiled sweeping plans for the competition designed as a pathway to global exposure for aspiring young talents.
Details of the project were made public at a well-attended press conference on Tuesday, September 23, 2025, held at Muna Suites, Owerri, where officials outlined the format, prizes, and international opportunities awaiting participants.
According to Project Director Jennifer Anusiem, the competition will begin in Nigeria on October 4, with registration closing on September 30, while in Ghana, registration ends on October 2 ahead of the official kick-off on October 7.
Matches will run across four states in Nigeria—Imo, Enugu, Lagos, and Abuja—and four regions in Ghana—Greater Accra, Oti, Central, and Ashanti.
“Registered clubs will compete at their centres, with each state or region producing a champion,” Anusiem explained.
“In Nigeria, state winners will receive N1 million and qualify for the national finals in Enugu. The national champion will then face Ghana’s winner in a two-legged final to determine the overall GOAT champion.”
She further revealed that regional champions in Ghana would each receive N5,000, while the ultimate winner between Nigeria and Ghana would embark on a youth football tour of London. Plans are in place for the continental champions to play against selected English youth sides, with hopes of arranging a fixture against West Ham United’s U-19 team.
“This project is about creating genuine opportunities,” Anusiem, who also doubles as CEO of Imo Angels FC, said. “Scouts will be on ground to identify the best talents, and the champions will gain international exposure in England.”
For the Chief Executive Officer of the tournament, Nnaemeka Nwankwo, the project is deeply personal.
“I once lost the chance to sign for Leeds United because of my age. At 32, I was no longer eligible when they needed a younger goalkeeper,” he recalled.
“That disappointment inspired me to create pathways for younger players, ensuring they do not suffer the same fate. This tournament is about catching them young and opening doors I never had.”
Nwankwo added that through GOAT’s partnership with Frenford FC in the UK, which also collaborates with West Ham United, participants will have access to scouts from leading English clubs. He stressed that passports, visas, and travel expenses for the winners will be fully funded by the organisers.
“We want to connect tribes through football and give back to society,” he said.
At the unveiling, Imo Centre Coordinator Neville Okere highlighted the wider significance of the project, noting that with the Nigerian league now shifting its focus to younger players, GOAT provides a rare opportunity to expose winners to international football cultures. He added that even those who do not reach the national playoffs will be recommended to clubs.
Similarly, Enugu Centre Coordinator Felix Nwosu assured that deliberate mechanisms have been put in place to curb age fraud, ensuring only genuine U-19 players are given the chance to participate.
Organisers reiterated that registration remains ongoing through the official website, www.gameonafrika.com, with fees set at N50,000 for Nigerian clubs and N1,000 for Ghanaian teams.
The National Sports Commission (NSC) says it will no longer pay athletes training grants in foreign currency.
The development came after sprinter, Kayinsola Ajayi, alleged foul play regarding the disbursement of training grants by the Commission.
Head of NSC’s Elite Athletes Development and Podium Board, Yusuf Alli, told Tidesports source on Friday that it was wrong of Ajayi to rubbish the good intention of the NSC, saying: “I have been in athletics for over 40 years now, and this current NSC Board, led by Mallam Shehu Dikko and Bukola Olopade, has done what others could not do. So far, the NSC has spent over N200 million in payment of training grants for athletes ahead the 2026 Commonwealth Games and preparation for Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.”
The NSC sourced the money from the private sector. It has never happened before. “I expected the athletes to encourage the NSC so that it can do more instead of raising unnecessary alarm and making allegations that is capable of discouraging them (NSC) and even the sponsors. It takes good initiative and trust for sports administrators in Nigeria to convince sponsors to donate money for welfare of athletes,” he said.
Speaking further, Alli, whose long jump record of 8.27m set in 1989 (35 years ago) is still unbroken, said: “We have decided that henceforth, all payment of training grants will be in Naira. No more payment of grants in U.S. dollars. We are Nigerians, and everyone knows that the exchange rate is not stable. As at the time Ajayi got his money, the rate of dollars to Naira may have changed
“I expected him to make a call either to myself or anybody in the Elite Board, or even the NSC to find out what happened instead of resorting to such allegation.
“If we make payment in Naira, any athlete who wants to convert his or her money to any foreign currency can tell their people back home to do so. I am sure this will solve the problem. If anybody wants to know how much he is entitled to, he must first of all find out the category that he or she belongs to.”
Alli disclosed that coaches, who train the athletes would soon get their grant. “They train the athletes, and the NSC feel is it not proper to leave them out in payment of grants. We have compiled their names, and very soon, the coaches would get their money,” Alli stated.
The chairman of the Nigeria Premier Football League, Gbenga Elegbeleye, has directed that a minute’s silence be observed before kick-off at all Matchday 30 fixtures this weekend in honour of former Green Eagles captain Henry Nwosu, following the death of the former midfielder at the age of 62.
In a statement made available to Tidesports source on Saturday, the league body confirmed that the tribute would be held across all matches to recognise the contribution of the former international to Nigerian football.
Elegbeleye described Nwosu’s passing as both a personal loss and a painful moment for the country’s club football community.
Nwosu, who was the youngest member of Nigeria’s squad that won the 1980 African Cup of Nations, died in the early hours of Saturday at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital in Ikeja after a brief illness.
The former midfielder had reportedly spent several days in hospital receiving intensive care before his death.
Elegbeleye said the late footballer was more than a colleague within the sport, describing him as someone with whom he had maintained a long-standing personal relationship dating back to his time at the National Sports Commission.
He said the former national team star had remained supportive of him in various moments of his career, including when he was nominated for the Pitch Football Awards.
Reflecting on Nwosu’s legacy, the NPFL chairman said the news represented the loss of a major figure in Nigerian football, noting that the former midfielder distinguished himself not only at club level but also later contributed to the development of the domestic game as a coach.
Elegbeleye said the death of the former international was “the death of a true ambassador of the domestic and national team football because he not only made his mark as a player in league clubs, but he also coached some of the league clubs.”
He added that death remained a submission to the will of God and prayed for the repose of Nwosu’s soul while urging strength for his family as they mourn the loss of their loved one.
Earlier confirmation of the former midfielder’s death came from former Nigeria international Segun Odegbami, who revealed that Nwosu died after spending five days in hospital. Odegbami said the former player passed away at about four o’clock in the morning at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, where he had been receiving treatment in intensive care.
“It is with deep pain in my heart that I have to be the conveyor of the news of the death of Henry Nwosu MON,” Odegbami said.
“After five days in hospital battling for his life, the one I call ‘Youngest Millionaire’ passed on at four o’clock this morning at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos, where he had been in intensive care since Wednesday. May he rest peacefully with our Creator in heaven”.
At the club level, the former international spent most of his career in Nigeria, starring for New Nigeria Bank FC of Benin City and African Continental Bank FC of Lagos during a period when both sides were among the dominant forces in domestic football. His performances later earned him moves abroad, where he also played for ASEC Mimosas of Ivory Coast and Racing FC Bafoussam of Cameroon.
