By Wale Mustapha
The Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) has announced the venues and dates for the zonal group stages of the 2024/25 Under-19 Youth League.
According to the league board, matches will be held across three centers: Ikenne (Ogun State), Kano (Kano State), and Umuahia (Abia State), as part of efforts to develop young talent and accelerate their progression into professional football.
The Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne will host Group A fixtures featuring Shooting Stars, Ikorodu City, Sunshine Stars, Kwara United, and Bendel Insurance. Matches in this zone will run from Monday, August 4, to Saturday, August 9.
Group B action will take place in Kano, where hosts Kano Pillars will be joined by El-Kanemi Warriors, Katsina United, Nasarawa United, Niger Tornadoes, and Plateau United. Games in this zone are scheduled for August 10 to 16.
In Umuahia, Group C teams—Abia Warriors, Akwa United, Enyimba, Rangers, Heartland, Bayelsa United, Rivers United, and Lobi Stars—will compete for a place in the final round.
The top two teams from each zone will advance to the season-ending Top Six playoffs, where the national champions will be decided.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
