The maiden edition of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) South-South Under-15 Boys Football Championship concluded in grand style on 20 December 2025 at the Sharks Football Club Stadium, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, with renewed emphasis on sports as a vital non-kinetic tool for youth engagement and national development.
The week-long championship featured teams from the South-South geopolitical zone, alongside Abia and Imo States. In a press statement, the Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, said the tournament underscored the Armed Forces of Nigeria’s commitment to positively engaging young people amid the nation’s security challenges.
At the closing ceremony, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede, reiterated the importance of sports in grooming disciplined, talented, and focused youths.
He described the championship as more than a football competition, noting that it promoted unity, teamwork, character building, and patriotic values such as discipline, resilience, fair play, and respect. The CDS was represented by the Chief of Defence Administration, Rear Admiral Gideon Kachim.
Also speaking, the Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara—represented by the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Sports, Mr Emmanuel Ndah—commended the CDS and organisers for hosting the event in Port Harcourt.
He noted that the championship fostered unity, teamwork, and discipline among participants from the South-South, Abia, and Imo States, describing sports as an effective platform for youth engagement and national development.
Earlier, during the third-place match, the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Nigerian Army, Major General Emmanuel Eric Emekah, advised youths to shun social vices such as drug abuse, cultism, indiscipline, peer pressure, and truancy.
He urged them to embrace sports as a means of building discipline, teamwork, resilience, and respect for good order, stressing that discipline in sports translates to discipline in life. He thanked the CDS for entrusting 6 Division with hosting the tournament, describing it as timely, especially with the yuletide season approaching.
In a vote of thanks, an Imo State Military athlete, Elijah Dozie, expressed appreciation to the CDS for his commitment to youth and sports development. He thanked fellow athletes for the lessons, exposure, and friendships gained during the tournament, pledging continued discipline, teamwork, and excellence on and off the field.
In the final match, Team Imo State Military emerged champions after a keenly contested 2–1 victory over Team Edo State. Team Edo State finished second, while Team Akwa Ibom State secured third place after a penalty shootout. Medals and trophies were subsequently presented, an exercise coordinated by the Chairman of the Central Organising Committee, Air Vice Marshal Tunde Phillips.
Overall, the championship highlighted the CDS and the Armed Forces of Nigeria’s sustained commitment to youth empowerment, unity, and productive non-kinetic engagement through sports.
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