Izuchukwu OkosiThe 14th edition of the Inter State U-15 Emeka Anyaoku Football Tournament slated to begin on July 3 will feature 120 teams across the six geopolitical zones of the country reports Prime Business Africa.
The tournament is in honour of the former Commonwealth Secretary-general Chief Emeka Anyaoku and sponsored by Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelSpeaking with journalists in Lagos, tournament coordinator, Paul Freeman said the tourney would be played simultaneously across the six geo-political zone saying that two finalists would emerge in each zone to play the round of 16 in Lagos. He disclosed four teams would represent Lagos in the round of 16.
“We are seriously planning for the Anyaoku cup. We have been doing this for the past thirteen years and this year’s edition would be different because the cup donor asked us to extend it to other part of the country. Let me say this particular tourney is being sponsored by our Speaker House of Representatives and he was happy to see the tourney being played across the country,” he said.
Freeman disclosed that the organizing committee recently met the cup donor, Chief Anyaoku and he had given them necessary support to make this year’s edition a memorable one and urged the committee to ensure that the competition extend to other part of the country.
“This is biggest task for the committee and we are trying to talk to our partners in other part of the country to give us more football academies that have football pedigree because we want to select and allow teams who are disciplined in the tournament,” he said.
Freeman added that the cup donor sponsored the tournament as part of his contribution to the football development in the country noted that the tourney would empower the young footballers who have career in the round leather game.
He however thanked the former Commonwealth scribe and Honourable Gbajabiamila for showing interest in the youth and sports development in the country and promised that the organizing committee is equal to the task to organize an hitch free tournament.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
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