The organizer of the Naija Super Eight, Flykite Productions, have revealed how the 12
clubs that will participate in the football tournament’s play-offs were selected.
The qualification process began on April 10 and concluded on May 12, with fan voting on the DStv website and DStv App. These votes were verified by the respected audit firm Deloitte.
The two teams with the highest number of votes have secured their spots in the play-offs,
which are scheduled to take place in Eket from June 23 to 25. The announcement of the
qualifying teams was made during a ceremony in Lagos on Friday.
Deloitte provided the organisers with the final vote tallies, which amounted to a total of
1,926,495 valid votes. The majority of these votes, 1,443,215, were cast through the DStv App, while the DStv website contributed 24,922 votes. Additionally, 458,358 votes were received from mobile devices. Voting
was open to football fans in Nigeria, Republic of Benin, Ghana, and South Africa.
Nigeria emerged as the top vote contributor, securing 1,924,272 votes (99.88 percent).
South Africa followed with 1,323 votes (0.07 percent), while the Republic of Benin accounted for 0.03 percent with 600 votes. Ghana had the lowest number of votes at 300 (0.02 percent).
Breaking down the verified votes, in the North West geopolitical zone, Kano Pillars and
Katsina United football clubs garnered 34,264 and 19,242 votes respectively, securing their qualification. They were followed by Kaduna United (12,745), Kebbi United (10,482), Jigawa Golden Stars (5,062), Zamfara United (2,222), and Sokoto (2,019). The total number of votes recorded in this zone was 86,036.
The North-East zone yielded 48,699 votes, with Yobe Stars and Gombe United receiving
14,429 and 13,585 votes respectively, ensuring their qualification. They were followed by
Adamawa United (10,232), El-Kanemi Warriors (4,758), Wikki Tourists (3,881), and Taraba United (1,814).
In the North Central zone, City Football Club of Abuja and Lobi Stars of Makurdi qualified
with 197,858 and 71,182 votes respectively. They were trailed by Plateau United (48,918), Kwara United (39,508), Niger Tornadoes (28,756), Nasarawa United (27,065), and Kogi United (17,748). The total number of votes cast in this zone was 431,035.
Fans in the South-South zone delivered a total of 558,341 votes, with Rivers United securing the most with 198,320 votes, followed by Bendel Insurance with 149,627 votes, ensuring their qualification. Akwa United received 88,774 votes, Warri Wolves had 62,391 votes, and Bayelsa United obtained 29,381 votes to come in third, fourth, and fifth place respectively.
Rovers of Calabar and Vandrezzer FC of Eket received 20,712 and 9,136 votes respectively.
The South West zone, where 3SC of Ibadan and Remo Stars of Shagamu qualified with
154,154 and 100,999 votes respectively, delivered a total of 497,478 votes. Sunshine Stars (65,345), Ikorodu City (56,051), Sporting Lagos (42,041), Crown Football Club of
Ogbomosho (33,183), Ekiti United (23,264), and Smart City FC of Lagos (22,341) accounted for the remaining votes.
In the South East zone, Enyimba Football Club of Aba and Heartland FC of Owerri qualified
with 94,034 and 63,327 votes respectively. The total votes obtained in this zone amounted to 304,906. The remaining votes were distributed among Rangers International of Enugu (56,154), Edel FC of Nnewi (42,865), Abia Warriors of Umuahia (24,937), and Cynosure FC of Abakaliki (23,589).
The winners of the six elimination zonal play-off games will qualify for the Naija Super Eight finals, scheduled to take place in Lagos from July 7 to 16. Additionally, two wildcard entrants will be determined by the organizers to join the finals.
