Lagos, Owerri, and Calabar will host the Southern Zonal playoffs of the Samuel Okwaraji Foundation national secondary schools football competition, known as the Memoir Cup.
The matches will take place at Maracana Stadium in Ajegunle, Lagos, Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri, and UJ Esuene Stadium in Calabar. They will cover the South West, South South, and South East regions.
Senator Osita Izunazo, who chairs the organising committee, announced that the playoffs will run from Tuesday, November 3 to Saturday, November 7, 2026. This stage follows the state finals held around the country earlier this year.
Izunazo mentioned that the three zonal champions from the south will meet the three champions from the Northern Zonal playoffs for the national finals in Lagos later this month.
The Nigeria School Sport Federation is the technical partner for this event. Its President, Olabisi Joseph, said they are prepared for the southern playoffs. He emphasized that the transparent systems in place will help in finding football talents in secondary schools.
"We have ensured that all the processes and systems in place for this tournament are very thorough, efficient and transparent, and these standards will not drop or be lowered.
"We are ready for the zonal playoffs in the south, and they will be organised with the same standards used for the Northern region. I can assure you that these will also be maintained for the national finals later this month," Joseph said.
The competition is sponsored by First Bank. It is organised to honour Super Eagles player Samuel Okwaraji. He collapsed and died on August 12, 1989, during a 1990 World Cup qualifier against Angola at the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos.
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