ANTHONY Joshua has been suspended from boxing for 28 days following his knockout defeat to Daniel Dubois. The two-time heavyweight champion was sent to the mat four times as Dubois unleashed a blistering performance to defend his IBF heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium last Saturday. Joshua was knocked out in the fifth round after a savage right hand from his opponent, leaving him crumbled on the canvas. As a result of that defeat, Joshua has now been handed a 28-day suspension by the British Boxing Board of Control. Before anyone panics, Joshua’s ‘ban’ is standard procedure for British fighters who…
Author: Peter Noah KC
AUGUSTINE Eguavoen will continue in his role as the interim coach of the Super Eagles, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has said. NFF disclosed this in a statement on X on Thursday, saying the appointment followed a recommendation from the NFF’s Technical and Development Sub-Committee. “The Executive Committee of Nigeria Football Federation on Thursday approved the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee for the Federation’s Technical Director, Coach Augustine Eguavoen to continue in his role as Head Coach of the Super Eagles, and lead the team in its 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Libya next month,”…
HEAD coach of El-Kanemi Warriors, Aliyu Zubairu, is confident that the Maiduguri side can win all their home matches in the 2024/25 Nigeria Premier Football League season. Following a thrilling 4-3 win at Nasarawa United last Saturday, the Maiduguri side have now picked up four points in two matches this season, and both were on the road. Ahead of what will be their first home match of the season against Plateau United on matchday four, the gaffer believes the Maiduguri side will be inspired by their away form as well. “No hiding place for any opponent that comes to Maiduguri,…
FOOTBALL enthusiasts have taken to social media to urge the President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, to invest in the Nigeria Premier Football League. This is against the backdrop of the billionaire business mogul regretting not buying the English Premier League giants, Arsenal, when his interest lies in owning a football club. In an interview with Bloomberg’s Francine Lacqua in New York, Dangote explained that he missed out on buying Arsenal when the club were valued at around $2bn but instead committed his resources to the refinery project in Nigeria. The Kano-born had in 2020 made…
THE President and Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has expressed his regret for not buying Arsenal when his interest lies with owning a football club. He said he wished he had bought the English side club when the team was valued at around $2 billion. Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg’s Francine Lacqua in New York, the billionaire business mogul explained that he missed out on buying Arsenal by committing his resources to the refinery project. He said, “I think that time has passed. The last time when we had this interview, I told you as soon…
THE Director of Sports, Defence Headquarters, Air Vice Marshal Abidemi Marquis, has disclosed that about 1,600 athletes will compete in the forthcoming Armed Forces Games 2024 between 23rd to 27th September, 2024 in Kaduna. Addressing a press conference in Kaduna to usher in the commencement of the games with the theme, ‘Enhancing Military Professionalism Through Sport’, AVM Marquis who doubles as the Chairman, Local Organising Committee (LOC) said the event will feature 19 sporting activities. He noted that the Organization of African Military Sports awarded Nigeria the hosting right for the African Military games 2024 to be held in Abuja.…
KANO State athletes, who participated in the 8th edition of the National Youth Games (NYG) in Asaba, Delta State, on Friday called on Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to address the issue of their poor camp allowances. The athletes, speaking anonymously, expressed dissatisfaction with the daily allowance they received, claiming it was significantly lower than that of their counterparts from neighbouring Northwestern states. “We were given less than N20,000 for ten days, while athletes from Kaduna, Katsina, Sokoto, Kebbi, and Zamfara received N50,000. Jigawa athletes were paid the highest, receiving N80,000,” one of the athletes said. Despite the disparity in allowances,…
SUPER Eagles and Bayer Leverkusen striker, Victor Boniface, has recounted how he used to pay a token of ₦30 as a young player to watch Champions League matches, and is now living his dream by playing in the same competition. Boniface reflected on his journey in a post obtained from Fabrizio Romano’s X handle on Friday. The striker was expressing his delight at playing in his first Champions League match during his team’s 4-0 victory against Feyenoord on Thursday. The German club signed Boniface from Union SG to Bayer Leverkusen in 2023 in a deal worth over €21.7m. He said:…
DELTA State has emerged the overall winner of the 8th edition of the National Youth Games (NYG), tagged Asaba 2024, after amassing 98 medals, including 41 gold, 27 silver, and 30 bronze. The latest update of the medal table, released on Wednesday night, shows Delta firmly in the lead, with Lagos State taking the second spot with 62 medals—25 gold, 19 silver, and 18 bronze. Edo State, which had earlier held second place, slipped to third with 17 gold, 12 silver, and 24 bronze medals. While Delta celebrated its dominant performance, the NYG proved challenging for some states. Ebonyi and…
THE ongoing Flying Eagles screening exercise meant to select players for the 2024 WAFU B U20 Championship, scheduled for October and November in Togo, has been hijacked by government officials, football agents, and football academy owners. According to some of the players undergoing the selection process at the FIFA Goal Project in Abuja, who spoke to this newspaper on the condition of anonymity for fear of being victimised, the exercise has been completely taken over by the infiltrators, leaving the Aliyu Zubairu-led technical crew confused. “Some players are either sent here by top government officials with lettesr or by football…
DEFENDING champions, Delta State, are leaving no stone unturned in their quest to win the ongoing 8th National Youth Games. At the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Delta’s Dominion Udoh clinched the 400m boys’ gold medal with a time of 49.33 seconds. It was a personal best that left him in tears on seeing his new PB of 49.33s, winning the gold medal for Delta state. Former champion, Michael Aniche (Abia state) had to settle for Silver this time around, but he also ran a new PB, going under 50s as well to finish 2nd in 49.76s. Kennedy Erhieyovwe (Delta) finished 3rd…
NIGERIA’s junior D’Tigress suffered a 76-56 loss to Mali in the final of the FIBA U-18 Women’s Afrobasket final on Saturday night. Oummou Koumare, who was voted the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament, put up a massive 31 points, four rebounds, and five steals against Nigeria. The U-18 national women’s basketball team, the Junior D’Tigress, fell short in the FIBA U18 Women’s AfroBasket 2024 final on Saturday, losing 56-76 to Mali, who clinched a record ninth title. Despite a strong start with a 5-0 run, the Nigerians struggled to keep up with the dominant Malian side. Mali won…
THE First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu has commended the Team Nigeria to the just concluded 2024 Paralympics in Paris, noting that their success has united all Nigerians in celebration. She stated that their stellar performance has shown the true meaning of perseverance, dedication and true sportsmanship. The First Lady stated this while receiving the athletes and officials led by the Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Enoh, in her office at the State House, Abuja. This was disclosed by the media aide to the First Lady, Busola Kukoyi, in a statement made available to News Point Nigeria late Saturday. She…
FEW months after jostling for the job of the Super Eagles coach, ex-internationals Finidi George and Emmanuel Amuneke will be at the opposite end in the dugout when Rivers United host Heartland in a 2024/25 Nigeria Premier Football League match-day two clash with Heartland in Port Harcourt on Saturday (today). Coincidentally, both managers are in search of their first league wins in charge of their new clubs after they both made the switch before the start of the campaign. Finidi, who got the Super Eagles job and had a two-game stint with the national team, however, refused to play the…
THE Minister of Sports Development, John Enoh, has warned that any attempts at age cheating in the National Youth Games would not be tolerated, reiterating that the Games were intended for athletes of 15 years and below. Enoh, who emphasised the importance of upholding the integrity of the games by strictly adhering to the age requirement, called on participating states in the games to embrace the spirit of fair play and sportsmanship. He also urged spectators and fans to support the young athletes representing their states in various sporting activities. This was contained in a statement issued on Thursday, by…
THE Governor of Delta State, Sheriff Oborevwori, yesterday made a declaration that this year’s edition of the National Youth Games will be better than what was witnessed last year. Delta State hosted the 7th edition of the Youth Games in Asaba, last year when the Governor was barely a few weeks in office. The Governor who spoke shortly after inspecting facilities at the Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba, the state capital, which is the main venue for the games, assured that participants will have a completely different experience. Oborevwori, who inspected the swimming pool, shooting range and other facilities at the…
RWANDA held Nigeria’s Super Eagles to a frustrating 0-0 draw during their second match of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. The Eagles could not find the breakthrough despite being dominant in most part of the game, as the Rwandese team remained disciplined in the defence. With the 3-0 convincing win over Benin Republic on Saturday, expectations were high for the Nigerians to come out with victory and maintain 100 per cent record in the qualifiers. Only one change was made by coach Augustine Eguavoen from the last game, as Alex Iwobi made way for Fisayo Dele-Bashiru in the…
LONG-TERM Chelsea target and Napoli forward Victor Osimhen is “not a greedy boy”, according to former Blues midfielder John Obi Mikel. Throughout the summer transfer window, Chelsea were heavily linked with the 25-year-old who had been made available by his Italian club. Despite the saga dragging on for weeks, there was an expectation that the Nigeria international would eventually link up with one of the biggest clubs in Europe or the Saudi Pro League. However, a deal failed to materialise in either situation, Osimhen instead moving to Galatasaray on a season-long loan deal having continued to be frozen out by…
SUNSHINE Stars Football Club of Akure started the Nigeria Premier Football League season with a 3-0 win over Bayelsa United. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the match was played on Sunday at the Dipo Dina Stadium, Ijebu-Ode, Ogun. Sunshine Stars’ forward, Seidu Salisu opened the scoring with an assist from Promise Awosanmi in the 44th minute into halftime. On resumption of the second half, Awosanmi made it 2-0 for the home side from a free kick in the 54th minute. Stephen Chuckwudi, who came from the bench, made it 3-0 in the 90th minute with a clinical finish…
GOALS from Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen ensured that Nigeria’s Super Eagles began the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 qualifiers with a 3-0 victory over Benin Republic at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo on Saturday. Lookman, who just got nominated for the 2024 Ballon d’Or award, celebrated the feat with two well-taken goals to set the 2024 AFCON runners up on their way to making it to Morocco for the next edition. The Beninese thought that they had done enough to hold out for a 0-0 first half with a spirited defensive display, but the Atalanta of Italy star…