The second edition of the Victor Ikpeba Football Challenge will start in Warri, Delta State on December 21, 2022 with a total of 24 teams from in and around the Delta financial capital, participating.
According to the sponsor of the Under-17 Championship, the 1997 African Footballer of the Year, Victor Ikpeba,: “He is hosting the event in its second edition to give back to the Nigerian society that made him a successful international soccer star.
He added: “The purpose of hosting the Under-17 Soccer Challenge is to enable top clubs in Europe have the opportunity of discovering some young talented Nigerian footballers from the grassroots in the young age, just as he was discovered after he played for the Golden Eaglets of Nigeria at Scotland 89.”
Ikpeba noted that, some of the discovered exceptional players at the three-day tournament will be exposed to foreign scouts and coaches who will further expose their talents to foreign clubs.
The General Coordinator of the Victor Ikpeba Football Challenge, Mr. Dapo Sotuminu, said against the setting at the first edition in Warri, when only 16 teams participated in the competition, the 2022 edition would see 24 clubs converge at the Army Day Secondary school, Effurun, Warri to play in the competition.
The Technical Director of the Victor Ikpeba Football Challenge, Mr. Marvel Dick, stated that the event has generated more interest among youth players in Warri, reason the number of participating teams have been increased to 24.
He revealed that, the eventual champions of the competition which ends on December 23, will go home with a cash prize of N150,000. Second place will take home a cash prize of N100,000 and third placed team N70,000. While the fourth place team will also get a consolation prize of N50,000.
He added that, there will also individual awards for exceptional players during the competition. The awards are ; Best Goalkeeper, Best Defender, Highest Goal Scorer and Most Valuable Player.
