By Our Reporter,The Nation
Copyright thenationonlineng
By Joshua Osinowo
The Nigeria National League (NNL) will begin its 2025/2026 season on Saturday, 8th November with a star match, while other opening-week fixtures follow on 14–16 November at selected venues nationwide.
This decisions was part of the key resolutions reached at the league’s 16th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on Tuesday at the 5th Chukker Resort, Maraban Jos, Kaduna State.
The meeting, which drew top football administrators, thanked Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, the state’s Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, and the people of Kaduna for hosting the event. It also praised NFF President and the entire federation board for what it called their “extraordinary ability” in supporting the league’s growth.
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A major highlight was the adoption of an abridged four-conference format Conferences A, B, C and D for the new season. In a significant change, the AGM abolished the Super 8 competition, declaring that the club finishing first in each conference will gain direct promotion to the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL).
However, a Super 4 tournament will still hold to decide the overall NNL champion. Crucially, any promoted club that fails to compete in the Super 4 will forfeit its NPFL slot to the conference runner-up.
The AGM reinforced strict standards: only stadia that meet the league’s approved facility criteria will host matches, and every club must present insurance cover for players and officials during registration.
Financial matters also received attention, with delegates adopting the 2024/2025 audited report and approving the 2025/2026 budget. The league confirmed that only Prostar/NNL-branded match balls will be used; any home team failing to provide the official ball will face sanctions.
The gathering lauded ongoing sponsorship efforts and ended with a vote of confidence in the NNL board led by Chairman George Aluo for its “resolve to continue improving the standard of the league.”
The resolutions signal a streamlined path to Nigeria’s top flight while demanding higher professionalism from clubs ahead of the new campaign.
