As the dust of the just concluded intercollegiate Nigerian University Games Association, (NUGA) competition held in Lagos is yet to settle, no fewer 60 teams across different tertiary institutions in Nigeria will contest for honours in the 2022 Higher Institutions Football League (HiFL), the organizers have said.
According to PACE Sports and Entertainment Marketing, the organisers of the game, this year’s edition which is billed to start in April with team registration while the qualifiers begin in May promises to be “more than a game” with other exciting activities set to feature in HiFL 2022.
Speaking at the international press conference held in Lagos, the chairman of the HiFL, Dr Onyekachi Onubogu said preparations are in top gear to ensure that sports lovers in the country enjoy the best of collegiate football this season. Building on the successes recorded in previous seasons, Onubogu said the projection is to make HiFL the biggest tertiary institutions competition in Africa with the support of all relevant stakeholders.
“We sincerely appreciate our sponsors, Stanbic IBTC, Hiversa, and BOLD for their esteemed support and commitment to developing the Nigerian youths and collegiate sports,” Onubogu stated.
Head of Brands and Marketing at Stanbic IBTC, Mrs Bridget Oyefeso-Odusami, in her remark said “this is the fourth year of our partnership with HiFL. We had committed to a partnership for five years after which it will be evaluated. It has been interesting and we are still committed to the course to which we said we will. HiFL has done a great job so far. We realise that some of the teams that participated in the last edition of HiFL won most of the medals at this year’s NUGA games. On behalf of the Chief Executive for the Group and the Bank, we extend our goodwill and ask that the players should continue putting in their hard work. We will continue to do our bit in supporting youth development in Nigeria”.
Elaborating on the modalities, Executive Director of PACE Sports, Sola Fijabi explained that “the 2022 season promises so much excitement. We will have more schools register for the league this year as we also hope to expand the offerings. We want our stakeholders to feel the vibes that HiFL has created since its inception. We appreciate the success recorded so far and we hope for more going forward. Our goal is to consistently build on the achievements of the initiative to make it a reference point for collegiate sports in Africa”.
In his speech, the President of the Nigerian University Games Association (NUGA), Prof. Stephen Hamafyelto commended the organisers and assured all stakeholders that the association is committed to ensuring that the 2022 HiFL season is a success.
According to the season’s schedule, team registration will begin in April while the qualifying rounds start in May through to the Super Four Finals scheduled to hold in September.