Lagos, Owerri and Calabar will host the Southern Zonal playoffs of the Samuel Okwaraji Foundation National Secondary Schools Football Competition, popularly known as the Memoir Cup, from November 3 to 7, 2026.
The competition will feature secondary school teams from the South-West, South-East and South-South geopolitical zones, with matches scheduled across three designated centres.
The organising committee’s chairman, Senator Osita Izunazo, announced that Maracana Stadium in Ajegunle, Lagos, will host the South-West fixtures, Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri will accommodate the South-East teams, while U.J. Esuene Stadium in Calabar will host the South-South matches.
He said the three zonal champions that emerge from the southern playoffs would join their northern counterparts for the national finals scheduled to take place in Lagos later in November.
The Northern Zonal playoffs have already been concluded, producing three teams that qualified for the national championship.
Izunazo said the competition was organised in honour of late Nigerian international footballer Samuel Okwaraji and sponsored by First Bank.
The Nigeria School Sport Federation (NSSF), which serves as the competition’s technical partner, reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining transparency and high organisational standards throughout the tournament.
NSSF President Olabisi Joseph said the federation had established procedures to ensure that the southern playoffs would be conducted under the same standards applied during the northern competition.
She emphasised that the selection and qualification processes would remain transparent and that the federation would not compromise on the standards established for the tournament.
The Southern Zonal playoffs represent the second stage of the national competition, following the conclusion of state-level finals across the country earlier in the year.
The championship is designed to identify and develop young football talents among secondary school students while providing them with opportunities to compete at regional and national levels.
It also seeks to promote grassroots football development and encourage greater participation in organised school sports.
The competition honours the memory of Samuel Okwaraji, who collapsed and died on August 12, 1989, while representing Nigeria’s senior men’s national team, the Super Eagles, in a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Angola at the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos.
Okwaraji’s death during the match at the age of 25 made him one of the most remembered figures in Nigerian football history.
Through the annual competition, the foundation seeks to preserve his legacy of patriotism, dedication and service to the country while encouraging young Nigerians to pursue excellence in sports and education.
The national finals later in November will bring together the six zonal champions from across the country to compete for the overall title.
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