President Federation Cup: NFF Slams ₦1m Fine On Clubs That Fail To Honour Matches, Kwara United Punished

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has warned that clubs that fail to honour matches during the national preliminaries of the 2026 President’s Federation Cup will face a fine of 1 million naira.

The directive was announced on Monday by the federation’s Director of Competitions, Ruth David, who also confirmed the timetable for the state preliminary rounds of the competition.

According to the statement, the state preliminaries for the country’s oldest football tournament will run from 22 March to 26 April.

Clubs that complete registration at the state level but fail to show up for a scheduled match will also face sanctions.

“The State preliminaries kick off on Sunday, 22 March, and any club that fails to show up for any match after concluding registration for the competition at the State level will be made to pay the sum of ₦500,000,” the statement read.

The NFF added that final matches in the state competitions must be played on either Saturday, 25 April, or Sunday, 26 April. Each state football association, including the FCT, must submit its two representatives for the national stage on either of those dates.

NFF Suspends Referee, Clubs Fined Over Gombe Clash

Meanwhile, the NFF Disciplinary Committee has handed down sanctions following a protest by Gombe United FC over their Nigeria National League (NNL) clash with Jigawa Golden Stars FC on 21 December 2025.

The committee found that at 90+4 minutes the centre referee initially awarded a goal kick. However, fans of the home side encroached onto the pitch and the decision was later changed to a penalty.

Investigations also revealed that the referee submitted two conflicting match reports.

As a result, centre referee Terwase Chia has been suspended for the remainder of the season for professional misconduct.

Gombe United were fined ₦1 million for crowd encroachment, while Jigawa Golden Stars were fined ₦500,000 after their players refused to continue the match in protest.

The committee ruled that the fixture would stand as concluded with the scoreline recorded as 0-0.

Heavy Sanctions for Wikki Tourist

In a separate ruling, the disciplinary body imposed a series of penalties on Wikki Tourist FC following their league fixture against Katsina United FC on 8 February 2026 at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium in Bauchi.

The committee found that Wikki Tourist failed to provide adequate security, allowing unauthorised individuals into restricted areas after the first half.

Supporters of the club were also found to have thrown stones onto the pitch, an act described as conduct capable of bringing the game into disrepute.

The club was fined ₦2 million for failing to provide adequate security, ₦1 million for unsporting behaviour and another ₦1 million for throwing dangerous objects onto the field.

In addition, a stadium sanction requiring the team to play home matches in Jos was reduced to a five-match ban, effective from the date of the sanction.

NFF Punishes Kwara United With Points Deduction

The disciplinary committee also ruled on a protest involving Kwara United FC and Rivers United FC following their NPFL match on 18 February 2026 in Ilorin.

The panel found that Kwara United failed to provide adequate security, allowing unauthorised persons access to restricted areas.

Supporters were also blamed for harassment and injuries to the centre referee as well as players and officials of the visiting team.

As part of the sanctions, Kwara United were fined ₦2 million for security breaches and N1 million for failing to control their supporters. The club was also ordered to pay ₦2 million as compensatory costs for treatment and damages suffered by match officials and away team representatives.

The committee further deducted three points and three goals from Kwara United’s tally for assault on match officials.

A separate sanction ordering the club to move their home matches to the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta for the rest of the season was reduced to a five-match stadium ban.

The disciplinary committee stated that all decisions remain subject to appeal.