Z-PRO MEDIA

...NSC urges Ogun residents to troop out and show massive support for the historic Games By Maxwell Kumoye      The ancient and iconic Rock City of Abeokuta is bracing for impact as the maiden West Africa Para Games storms the MKO Abiola Stadium this Friday, November 28, marking a historic moment for para-sport in the region. All eyes will be on Ogun State Governor, His Excellency Prince Dapo Abiodun, the sport-loving chief host expected to officially declare the Games open.  Once the flame is lit, over 500 para-athletes across 11 sports will launch into six days of fierce competition, national pride and personal glory. Backed by the National Sports Commission (NSC), the Paralympic Committee of Nigeria (PCN) and the Ogun State Government, organisers say every detail, from security to medicals, accommodation to transportation has been locked in for a world-class event befitting the continent’s finest special athletes. NSC Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko and Di...

By Maxwell Kumoye    Nigeria’s sports economy just smashed through a major milestone and Shehu Dikko, chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), says the best is still ahead. Speaking with journalists in Lagos at the Big Sports Dialogue 1.0 on Monday, Dikko announced that the sports sector is now contributing “almost more than one percent” to Nigeria’s GDP, a figure that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. The revelation came after the NSC conducted a deep-dive analysis of newly collected economic data for Q4 2025, the first time the country has ever had structured, verifiable figures measuring the financial weight of sports. It's noteworthy to state that this claim by the Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Mallam Shehu Dikko has not been verified by Nigeria Bureau of Statistics. “THE BIGGEST PROBLEM IS DATA AND WE’VE FIXED IT” In a blunt assessment, Dikko said Nigeria’s biggest obstacle to unlocking the sports economy has been ...

By Maxwell Kumoye        The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has released the full roster of 73 referees, assistant referees and VAR officials for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and Nigeria, Africa’s supposed football giant, did not make the cut. Not one referee. Not one assistant. Not one VAR official. Zero. For a country that boasts one of the continent’s biggest leagues, richest football history, and a national team tipped among the favourites for the AFCON title, the omission is more than an embarrassment — it's a brutal reminder of a broken refereeing system that has refused to evolve. While smaller football nations like Eswatini, Niger, Djibouti, Rwanda, Lesotho, Benin, and even Sao Tome & Principe proudly earned representation, Nigeria, the self-proclaimed “giant of Africa”, sat outside the door, uninvited. This is not a curse. We are the cause. For years, the NPFL has battled credibility crises: • Inconsistent officiating • ...

...Anas Yusuf fires, Mangut rules By Maxwell Kumoye      Nasarawa United didn’t just win at the weekend—they owned Match-day 14 of the Nigeria Premier Football League honours. Rampaging forward Anas Yusuf headlined the NPFL Team of the Week after tearing El-Kanemi Warriors apart with a ruthless brace in United’s 3-0 beatdown in Lafia.  The in-form striker pushed his tally to six goals this season, while youngster Garba Mohammed added the third with an ice-cold finish from a tight angle. At the back, centre-half Utake Emmanuel made the cut with a dominant, brick-wall performance that left El-Kanemi attackers running out of ideas and into dead ends. His leadership at the rear was as fierce as it was flawless. Ageless Rabiu Ali of Kano Pillars, anchors the midfield that include Victor Adeoye and Kenechukwu Agu.  Uche Collins, Ubong Williams, Insurance of Benin's Joshua Baba, Lekan Gabriel also made the cut along with Remo Stars' Victor Mbaoma and Justic...

By Maxwell Kumoye      Egyptian football star Ramadan Sobhi’s career has plunged into its darkest chapter yet, as the Pyramids FC winger prepares an emergency appeal to the Swiss Federal Court after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) slammed him with a four-year doping ban. Sobhi’s lawyer confirmed on Thursday that the defence team is “preparing an appeal” and “has new grounds” to challenge the CAS ruling that overturned an earlier decision clearing the 28-year-old. The winger was first provisionally suspended in May 2024 after “atypical findings” were detected by a Barcelona lab. But the Egyptian Doping Organization (EGY-NADO) later absolved him, citing insufficient proof of violations related to banned substances or tampering. WADA refused to let the case die. The global anti-doping body escalated the matter to CAS — and won. The verdict has now sidelined Sobhi until 2028, a hammer blow for a player once hailed as Egypt’s next great football ambassador...

...Hail exceptional Team Nigeria Scrabble feat in the World  By Oluwatobiloba Zeal-Adepetu Kumoye who was at the Big Sports Dialogue 1.0 in Lagos      When the Big Sports Dialogue 1.0 wrapped up on Monday at Villa Angelia Hotel — hall packed, administrators on their feet — one man towered over the rest — Honourable, Bukola Olopade, Director-General of National Sports Commission (NSC), his words echoed like a rallying cry. With steely confidence and unshakeable resolve, Olopade declared that Nigerian sports is finally on the right track and heading toward greatness. Under the leadership of NSC Chairman Shehu Dikko and guided by the mandate from President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, he said, they are “rewriting the face of Nigerian sports,” aiming to set a standard across Africa. “Well it's the first edition of the Big Sports Dialogue 1.0, I believe there were a lot of takeaways for all stakeholders present, I'm particularly glad that this event gave Mallam Shehu D...

    Former Ghana national team coach Chris Hughton has declared Mohammed Kudus the signing of the summer, insisting Tottenham Hotspur struck gold when they snapped up the Ghanaian star in a £55 million deal that is already looking like a bargain. Spurs brought in seven new faces during the window, but none have hit the ground running like Kudus, who has not only settled instantly in North London but has muscled his way into WhoScored’s Team of the Season so far. Hughton, speaking to Flashscore, couldn’t hide his admiration for the move—both on the pitch and in the boardroom. “I think it was an excellent signing. The deal made a lot of sense financially. Tottenham needed a player of his profile. It’s a big stadium, a big stage, and he’s started his Tottenham career very well. He fits seamlessly into a system that favours crosses into the box.” Kudus arrived after a mixed spell at West Ham, where an explosive start fizzled into inconsistency. But under Thomas Frank a...

         Liverpool manager Arne Slot must find a way to arrest the team's slide even as the pressure mounts on him, former skipper Steven Gerrard said after the Merseyside club were thrashed 4-1 by PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday. The humbling defeat was Liverpool's ninth in their last 12 games in all competitions, their worst 12-game stretch since the 1953-54 season and the third successive game in which they have lost by three goals. Slot helped Liverpool win the Premier League in his first season in charge and while they now languish in 12th, and 13th in the Champions League, Gerrard dismissed talk of a crisis. "Crisis is a strong word, and disrespectful to some of the players that have delivered for this club, and for the manager that's delivered three months ago," Gerrard, who made 710 appearances for Liverpool, told TNT Sports. "But you cannot deny the team is struggling massively, they're on a terrible run, confidence...

…Promises big support for national teams By Maxwell Kumoye    Nigeria’s dominance of global Scrabble has once again been stamped in bold ink and one of the sport’s biggest admirers, Charles Oshanugor, is leading the applause. Oshanugor, a respected Match Commissioner with the Nigeria Soccer Federation USA (NSF-USA), hailed Team Nigeria’s historic performance at the 2025 World English Scrabble Players Association Championship (WESPAC) in Accra, where the Green Locusts outclassed 26 nations, including long-time giants, the United States. Team Nigeria didn’t just win. They raided Accra. With 350 wins, a massive +8975 spread, and a dominant 54.7% win rate, the team stormed to the Best Country Crown, leaving hosts Ghana and perennial rivals Kenya trailing far behind in what has been described as the best-organized WESPAC in history. “For Nigeria to wrestle the crown from the USA and the rest of the world is simply monumental,” Oshanugor said, his voice bursting with pri...

By Trust Ittai        Morocco’s women’s futsal team punched their ticket to the World Cup quarter-finals with a gritty, nerve-wracking 1–0 victory over Poland in Pasig City — a match where everything was on the line and nothing was guaranteed. Fresh off their crucial 3–2 win over hosts Philippines, the Atlas Lionesses entered the clash knowing the equation was brutally simple: win and advance, draw or lose and go home. Poland set up in a defensive shell from the opening whistle, parking bodies behind the ball and looking to strike only when Morocco slipped.  When Jasmine Demraoui thought she had given Morocco the perfect start in the 4th minute, VAR crushed the celebrations, spotting a handball in the build-up and wiping the goal off. The warning shot came from Poland in the 16th minute when Izabella Tracz rattled the crossbar with a thunderous effort, but the first half closed goalless despite Morocco’s superior attacking waves. The breakthrough fin...

By Maxwell Kumoye   After a long, gruelling season of tense boards, tight racks, high-stakes words, and marathon tournaments, that ended with the glorious and prestigious Best Country Crown at the 2025 WESPAC in Accra, Ghana. Nigeria’s Scrabble community is finally doing something completely different, dropping their tiles, racks, boards and stepping into full December groove mode, fully activated. This year, Scrabble Players and Friends are switching things up in grand style with the “Detty December All-White Party,” a premium end-of-year celebration set to light up Rowe Park Poolside in Lagos on December 27, 2025. For players who have spent months crunching probabilities, studying word lists, surviving nail-biting games, and travelling across cities for competitions, this event is perfectly timed, a chance to UNWIND, RECONNECT, and CELEBRATE the close of an intense competitive calendar. A NIGHT OF PURE VIBES With the high-energy DJ Teewisky on the decks and Hypeman C...

By Trust Ittai    Botswana have kicked off their AFCON 2025 campaign in style, unveiling a slick trio of Home, Away, and Third kits that signal confidence, pride and a modern new era for the Zebras ahead of their outing in Morocco. The fresh designs, bursting with bold colours, crisp lines and a futuristic finish, were revealed on Monday, instantly sparking excitement across Gaborone and the wider football community.  Each jersey carries a touch of national identity, a blend of tradition and ambition stitched into every panel. For a team stepping onto Africa’s biggest stage, these kits are more than just fabric, they’re a statement. Botswana will wear the new collection throughout the tournament as they attempt to turn their fairytale qualification into a blockbuster run.  And if the football matches the swagger of the shirts, the Zebras could become one of AFCON 2025’s surprise stories. Meanwhile, the Zebras have named a 36-man provisional team for the b...

By Maxwell Kumoye    CAF has appointed top Senegalese referee Issa Sy to take charge of the crucial CAF Champions League group-stage clash between Rivers United and RS Berkane this Friday in Uyo, an appointment that underlines just how big this fixture is. Rivers United heads into the match with something to prove after a bruising 3–0 defeat to defending champions Pyramids SC in Cairo on opening day of the group stage.  Now, with home fans behind them and their campaign already under pressure, the Pride of Rivers know they cannot afford another slip. RS Berkane, experienced continental campaigners and former Confederation Cup winners, arrives in Nigeria looking to seize early control of the group.  Both sides understand that Friday’s result could set the tone for the entire campaign. With Issa Sy in the middle, known for his calm authority and firm grip on high-tension matches, expect a fierce, fast, no-nonsense contest under the Uyo floodlights.  Th...

By Oluwatobiloba Zeal-Adepetu Kumoye    Former NBA star and one of the long-time pillars of of Nigerian basketball, Olumide Oyedeji, praised Lagos Legends for their dramatic 74–72 victory over Rivers Hoopers on Sunday. A win that delivered the franchise its first-ever NBBF Premier League title and a prized ticket to the 2026 Basketball Africa League (BAL). Oyedeji, the proprietor of Hoops N’ Read and a respected NBBF board member, described the victory as “a new chapter” for the domestic league, insisting that Legends’ rise is proof that Nigerian clubs can hit continental standards with the right planning and discipline. “Your victory is the result of hard work, and other teams should learn from the way Lagos Legends went about their business,” Oyedeji said, urging the champions to begin early preparation for the enormous challenge the BAL presents. While his own Hoops N’ Read side did not reach the Final Four this season, bowing out in the Final Eight, Oyedeji rem...