Samuel Okwaraji Football League commence the Northern region zonal elimination stage as Football Committee commends First Bank

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‎The Samuel Okwaraji Foundation and the Nigeria School Sports Federation wish to inform the general public, our partners and all stakeholders that the Northern Region Zonal Elimination Stage suffered a 48-hour delay.
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‎Speaking to press men in Owerri on Monday 21st Sept 2026, the secretary Steering Committee First Bank Samuel Okwaraji Nigeria Seconddary School Foothball Tournament under 16 Comrade Chidozie Achonwa said the delay was due to unforeseen logistical challenges which affected the arrival of participating states at the various zonal match centres in Abuja (North Central), Kano (North West), and Bauchi (North East).
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‎We are pleased to announce that those challenges have now been fully addressed, and all stakeholders are working in synergy to ensure a successful outing.
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‎The Northern elimination, which was originally billed to commence on Saturday, 19th September, 2026, has now officially commenced today, Monday, 21st September, 2026.
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‎We humbly commend and sincerely apologize to our proud sponsor, FirstBank Nigeria, and to all other stakeholders for any inconvenience this delay may have caused.
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‎We remain committed to delivering a grand and memorable tournament that everyone will be proud of.
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‎The FirstBank Samuel Okwaraji Nigeria Secondary Schools Football Championship is a collaboration between the Samuel Okwaraji Foundation and the Nigeria School Sports Federation with the active support of the Nigeria Football Federation and the National Sports Commission to honour the Legacy of the late Footballer Samuel Okwaraji and contributes to the development of grass root football in Nigeria with FirstBank Nigeria as sponsor
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‎The Southern  Elimination will be held between the 25th and 30th of September 2026 in 0werii for South East, Asaba for South South and Lagos for the South West
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