Sports

Gov Fintiri assures NFF of world-class stadium in Yola in few months’ time

Published

2 years ago

August 15, 2024

Joel Ajayi

The Executive Governor of Adamawa State, Rt. Hon. Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri has pledged that his administration will ensure the completion of a magnificent stadium in the capital city, Yola before the end of March 2025.

Governor Fintiri made this pledge in Yola on Thursday, while receiving a delegation of the Nigeria Football Federation led by its President, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, at the Government House.

“I want to thank you specially for this auspicious courtesy call. My administration has always been committed to constructing a befitting stadium, for the benefit of our teeming youth population in this State and the nation at large. Your coming will definitely hasten the pace of this project.

“Building the stadium is our own way of fighting poverty, youth restiveness and juvenile delinquency. We know that when the youth have the means of empowerment, and positive areas to channel their energy, all manner of vices and mischief reduce drastically in a society. We enjoin you to visit the site and advise the government appropriately on whichever aspects we have left out or have not set out properly, so that we can amend and incorporate those observations into the project.”

Earlier, Gusau had praised Governor Fintiri and his administration for the giant strides being made in several sectors in the State, and particularly expressed excitement at the latter’s expressed determination to conclude the project within a few months.

“Presently, we are experiencing hard times in our football with regards to stadia infrastructure. As I speak to you, we can only host our ‘A’ matches at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo. Your commitment to completing the stadium here in record time will help Nigeria Football, and ultimately become a magnificent legacy of your administration.

“Football is passion; football is life. It is the only factor that unifies all our peoples from different backgrounds and physical and mental divides. Sporting infrastructure enables the youth to be meaningfully and fruitfully engaged, and I assure you that the NFF will do whatever it can in terms of providing advice on configuration as the project moves ahead.”

Gusau also advised Governor Fintiri to sponsor an U17 Football Championship in the State, which will be organized by the Adamawa State Football Association, to unearth talents that can be nurtured from the grassroots to stardom.

It was learnt that the Adamawa New Stadium Complex had been glossed over by the three previous administrations in the State.

Present as well as the occasion were the Secretary to the Adamawa State Government, Alhaji Auwal Tukur; Chief of Staff to His Excellency, Dr. Edgar Amos; Hon. Commissioner for Youth and Sports in Adamawa State, Barr. Yakubu Wali; Member of NFF Executive Committee, Mr. Timothy Heman Magaji; NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi; Hon. Commissioner for Sports in Taraba State, Mr. Joseph Joshua; Chairman of Adamawa FA, Mr. Waziri Furo Gawe; Chairman of Gombe State FA, Mr. Yakubu Sarma; Hon. Sajo Mohammed; Chairman of Yobe State FA, Alhaji Garba Mohammed; NFF’s Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire; NFF’s Head of Member Associations, Ali Abubakar Muhammad; SA to NFF President, Danladi Umar and; Super Falcons’ Assistant Coach, Justin Madugu.

Share on Facebook

Sports

Plateau Vipers, Benue Queens Crowned Champions at HFN North Central Division One Tourney

Published

6 hours ago

October 3, 2026

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The President of the Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Jibril Seidu, has said the federation will continue to intensify its grassroots talent development drive through zonal competitions across the country.

Seidu stated this on Saturday in Abuja at the finals of the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship, where Plateau Vipers defeated Suleja Shooters 29-24 to emerge champions in the men’s category.

In the women’s final, Benue Queens of Makurdi defeated City Queens of Suleja to claim the title.

The eight-day tournament featured teams from across the North Central Zone, with Plateau Vipers of Jos, Confluence Stars of Lokoja, Unity Boys of Abuja, Suleja Shooters and Nasarawa Ambassadors of Lafia competing in the men’s category.

In the women’s category, Nuela Handball Academy of Ilorin, Inikpi Babes of Idah, Benue Queens of Makurdi and City Queens of Suleja competed for honours.

At the end of the competition, four teams — two male and two female — emerged as the North Central Zone’s representatives for the national Division One league.

According to Seidu, the tournament was organised as part of the federation’s deliberate strategy to take handball development back to the regions and discover talents that might otherwise remain unnoticed.

He said the HFN board, inaugurated on October 25, 2025, resolved that grassroots development was essential to creating a sustainable pipeline of players for national and international competitions.

“All the teams you have seen here are from the North Central Zone of the country, and every state is represented with an academy or state team,” he said.

Seidu explained that the new approach marked a departure from the previous system, where talent identification was largely centred on the federation’s major league competitions.

He said taking competitions to the regions would provide young players with greater opportunities to showcase their abilities while strengthening the foundation of handball across the country.

The HFN president also linked the grassroots initiative to Nigeria’s recent achievements in international handball, stressing the need to develop younger players who can eventually replace members of the current national teams.

He noted that Nigeria had qualified for the 2027 Men’s Junior Handball World Championship in North Macedonia, describing the achievement as evidence of the potential within the country’s handball system.

“How do we replace these players with upcoming players? This is the avenue for us to get players,” he said.

Seidu added that the federation was determined to make handball more visible and accessible, describing it as one of Nigeria’s major sporting disciplines with significant potential for growth.

The North Central tournament is part of a wider zonal programme designed to decentralise handball development across Nigeria.

According to the federation, similar competitions are being organised across other zones, including the South East, North East, North West and South South, with qualifiers from each zone expected to converge at a designated venue for the next stage of the competition.

The federation also appealed for greater support from sponsors, stakeholders and state associations to sustain its grassroots development programme.

It expressed appreciation to the participating states, academies, team sponsors and other stakeholders for their support and commitment to the growth of handball in Nigeria.

The federation said the initiative would provide a platform for discovering the next generation of Nigerian handball stars while expanding the sport’s reach beyond its traditional centres.
While Speaking the elated coach of Benue Queen Godwin Tondo has promised a stronger and more tactical performance after guiding the team to victory at the 2026 North Central Division One Handball Championship in Abuja.
He attributed the success to the team’s long-term youth development programme, noting that the squad was built through a deliberate process of identifying and nurturing young talents.
According to him, the programme began with the selection of 92 girls from secondary schools, who were subsequently trained and developed over a four-year period.

He said the team’s success was a product of sustained hard work and commitment despite the challenges encountered during preparations for the tournament.

“I feel very pleased being a champion today. The road to this stage was very, very hard, but I am very happy that we have got the result from all the toughness of the game,” he said.

Share on Facebook