Author: Nurudeen Obalola
Netflix said on Saturday that 60 million households worldwide had tuned in for the highly anticipated boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson, and the event peaked at 65 million streams, according to a statement. The bout between the 27-year-old social media influencer-turned-prize fighter Paul and the 58-year-old former heavyweight champion Tyson, which Paul won, was streamed live on Netflix. Nearly 50 million households tuned in for the co-main event between Ireland’s lightweight champion Katie Taylor and Puerto Rico’s featherweight champion Amanda Serrano, according to Netflix. “The bout is likely to be the most watched professional women’s sporting event in US history,”…
Nigeria Football Federation President, Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau, has commended the fighting spirit of Nigerian champions Edo Queens in defeating defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 on Saturday night to reach the semi-finals of the CAF Women’s Champions League in Morocco. Edo Queens, who won the Nigerian title for only the first time last season, went ahead to win the WAFU B Women’s Champions League competition (a qualifying tournament for the continental championship) in Cote d’Ivoire, and have now made it to the last four of the lucrative continental competition. “The NFF and the Nigerian football family are very happy at the…
By Ikeddy Isiguzo HAVE you heard the latest claims that a flawed National Sports Commission is better than a Ministry of Sports? There are no limits to ends we travel to justify illegalities, absurdities, and a tending national culture of excellence in doing things badly. The national propensity to do things illegally is readily available to those who dare match their fancy with action. Welcome to the National Sports Commission (NSC) which has been set up without a law. A lawless organisation has been granted access to federal funds approved for the Federal Ministry of Sports. Everyone in the National Assembly knows…
By Nurudeen Obalola Nigeria’s Edo Queens have advanced to the semi-finals of the CAF Women’s Champions League following a dramatic 2-1 victory over holders Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday in Casablanca, Morocco. The Nigeria Women’s Football League champions were on their way out of the competition after going 1-0 in the first half, but two goals in stoppage time turned it around, with Sundowns eliminated instead. The South African side, who have won the competition twice in three years, needed victory to advance to the last four stage, and got in front in the 24th minute through Melinda Kgadiete. Edo Queens…
By Nurudeen Obalola Ola Aina has been ruled out of the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier between the Super Eagles and Rwanda on Monday in Uyo. The Nottingham Forest full-back lasted 82 minutes on Thursday against Benin Republic in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire as Nigeria sealed top spot in qualifying Group D with a 1-1 draw. There were concerns Aina might have picked up a knock during the clash and he has now returned to England at the request of his English Premier League club. According to Super Eagles media, Forest asked for Aina’s early release, pleading that he needed to…
Youtuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul left a permanent stain on two-time heavyweight champion Mike Tyson’s boxing legacy with a tedious points win in front of 70,000 frustrated fans in Texas – and millions watching the controversial bout on streaming powerhouse Netflix. Tyson, as you might expect from a man aged 58 and having not competed professionally in 19 years, was a shadow of his old self. Paul, 27, is a boxing novice but was too young and too athletic. He kept Tyson at range, landing jabs and accurate punches in an eight-round contest of two-minute rounds. Tyson was slow and sluggish.…
Super Eagles head coach Austin Eguavoen has excused bereaved goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali from the Super Eagles squad to face Rwanda in Monday’s final 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match in Uyo. “He has been excused from the game. However, the player will come to watch the match and cheer his teammates on,” Team Administrator, Dayo Enebi Achor, told thenff.com. The player announced via social media on Friday that his father, Godspower Onyekam Abali, Chief Onyeogazrim 1 of Okwuzi, had passed on. The former chief surveyor was 67. Nwabali’s absence means the contest for the goalkeeping role in Monday’s encounter…
The Nigeria Football Federation has commiserated with Super Eagles goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali, who lost his father on Friday. The South Africa-based Nwabali announced the sad news on his Instagram page on Friday morning, hours after featuring for his country in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Benin Republic in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire. NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “We are shocked and saddened to hear of the demise of Stanley Nwabali’s father. Coming a day after the player featured in the match that won us the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations ticket, it made for a day of…
Ghana were the biggest casualties on Friday as the tiny Comoros Islands, Mali, Zambia and Zimbabwe added their names to the list teams who have qualified for next year’s 24-team Africa Cup of Nations. Nineteen teams have now secured placed in the tournament that will take place in Morocco. Mali won 1-0 away in Mozambique despite fears for their safety amid ongoing unrest in Maputo following disputed election results. Kamory Doumbia scored the only goal of a game that Mali wanted postponed, or at least played behind closed doors, for fears that the rioting might spread to the crowd. Mali…
By Nurudeen Obalola The Super Eagles and Monday’s opponents Rwanda have both arrived in Uyo ahead of the matchday 6 clash in the concluding round of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign. The two squads landed in the Akwa Ibom State capital on Friday after contrasting fortunes in their AFCON qualifiers on Thursday. While Rwanda lost at home to Libya, leaving their qualifying chances hanging by a thread, Nigeria played a 1-1 draw with Benin Republic in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire to win the group. Now, Rwanda’s only shot at securing the group’s second ticket is to beat the…