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NWFL Premiership

Founded	1990
Country	Nigeria
Confederation	CAF
Number of clubs	12
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	NWFL Championship
Domestic cup(s)	Nigerian Women's Cup Champions Shield
International cup(s)	CAF W-Champions League
Current champions	Edo Queens (1st title)
Most championships	Rivers Angels & Pelican Stars (7 titles)
Website	The NWFL
Current: 2023-24 NWFL Premiership

The NWFL Premiership (formerly Nigeria Women Premier League) is the top-level league for women's association football in Nigeria. It is the women's equivalent of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) for male players. The Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) organizes the Nigeria Women Premier League and the Nigeria Women Pro-league. In November 2017, Aisha Falode was elected chairperson of the league board, and was officially designated in January 2017.

History

Women's football in Nigeria started in 1978 with the foundation of the NIFFOA (Nigeria Female Football Organising Association), renamed NIFFPA (Nigeria Female Football Proprietors Associations) in 1979, and joined by clubs like Jegede Babes, Ufuoma Babes, Larry Angels, Kakanfo Babes and others. The first championship was organised by the NFA in 1990. Ufuoma Babes were dominant in the 1990s, before succumbing to Pelican Stars, who won the league between 1997 and 2002. By the 2010s, Rivers Angels became more frequent in the super tournaments, a mini-tournament held annually among the top-placed teams, to determine the overall winner of the league. Despite the high frequency of the abridged format over the years, the 2014 league season saw a straight round-robin season in determining the league winners. However, by 2015, there was a reintroduction of the group system.

Since 2015, the league has enjoyed considerable success and improvement under the auspices of Aisha Falode, and have produced several players for the national team and cadet teams, with more than 70% of players who have been capped for the national team having played in the NWFL. Since 2021, the league winners qualifies for the CAF Women's Champions League.

In the 2024 season, Edo Queens became the newest champions with their debut league win.

Renaming

On 5 March 2020, the Nigeria Women Football League, the governing body of professional women's association football in Nigeria, announced the re-branding of the women's league, by unveiling a new logo and renaming the three tiers of the league under the tutelage of the NWFL.

With the rebranding, the Nigeria Women Premier League is now known as the NWFL Premiership, the second-tier league known as NWFL Championship (formerly NWFL Pro-League) while the third-tier division becomes the NWFL Nationwide (formerly NWFL Amateur League).

Format

The women's top division league in Nigeria usually follows an abridged format with a super tournament at the end of the season. The top teams in each group (sometimes 1, 2 or 3) will form the super tournament at the end of the regular season to determine the overall winner of the league. The last placed teams are normally relegated to the second division, while promoted teams from the lower division are also admitted into the league. Despite the high frequency of the abridged format over the years, the 2014 league season saw a straight round robin season in determining the league winners, however by 2015, there was a reintroduction of the group system.

Champions

The list of champions and runners-ups:

Most successful clubs

1. ^ Shared title

Individual honours

Top scorers

1. Regular season only

Player of the Season

Notes

1. There was no Super tournament this season but Pelican Stars topped group A, while Rivers Angels topped group B in the regular season

See also

• List of women's football clubs in Nigeria
• Nigerian Women's Cup
• Nigeria Women's Super Cup

References

1. "Onigbinde optimistic about better Women's league". Archived from the original on 6 November 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
2. "Nigeria Women Football League Incorporated". Retrieved 6 November 2014.
3. "NFF wants Dame Jonathan to lead Falcons to Canada". Archived from the original on 6 November 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
4. ^ "Flourishing league kicks off again". BBC. 17 March 2001. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
5. "Falode, Okenwa head new NNL, NWFL boards". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2017-10-05.
6. "Aisha Falode pushing the boundaries in Nigeria". inside FIFA. 16 July 2023.
7. ""Invitation of players of Nigerian descent to Super Falcons will kill NWFL" FC Robo coach". bestchoicesports.com.ng. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
8. ^ "Edo Queens win first ever NWFL title". Punchng.com. 26 May 2024.
9. "NWFL re-brands, unveils new logo in Lagos". Channelstv. 5 March 2020.
10. "Women: Nigeria: Championship". sports123.com. Archived from the original on 28 November 2010. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
11. "Nigeria - List of Women Champions". RSSSF. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
12. "The forgotten Falcon". supersport.com.
13. "Technical Report FIFA Women World Cup 1991" (PDF). fifa.com. p. 84. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
14. "No plans to resurrect Ufuoma Babes- Kuejebola". Futaa.com. Retrieved 2017-10-14.
15. ^ "Africa: Ufuoma Babes Face Disbandment". PM News. December 31, 1998. Retrieved 2017-10-14.
16. "Delta are women league champs". SuperSport. Retrieved 2017-08-14.
17. "2009 Nigeria Women League Final". TideOnline.com. Tide News Website. 3 July 2009. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
18. "Football".
19. "Rivers Angels Eye more Trophy". TideOnline.com. The Tide News Website. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
20. "Women 2010/2011 football league season begins Jan 8". www.dailytrust.com.ng. Archived from the original on 2017-08-15.
21. "Rivers roast Ibom Queens in Cup tie". Super Sport. Retrieved 2017-08-14.
22. "Super Falcon Ohale relishing Swedish move". BBC Sport.
23. "Nigeria: Delta Queens Win 2012 Women's League Super-Six". Retrieved 2017-08-14.
24. "Women's Premier League a reality". supersport.com.
25. "Rivers, Delta Do Battle For Women League Title In Super 6 Final". 2012.
26. "Nasarawa Amazons are Nigeria Women League Champions | Goal.com". www.goal.com.
27. "Nasarawa Amazons upset Rivers Angels to lift League trophy - The Nation Nigeria". Archived from the original on 2017-08-15.
28. Ahmadu, Samuel (November 27, 2014). "Rivers Angels are Nigeria women league champions". Goal.com. Retrieved 2017-10-14.
29. "Rivers Angels retain Nigeria Women Premier League title". Retrieved 28 March 2016.
30. "Abia hosts 2015 Nigeria Women Premier League Super Six". Retrieved 28 March 2016.
31. "NWFL: Obuah Congratulates Rivers Angels For Emerging As Winners".
32. Tide, The (23 January 2017). "Amazons Promise To Win Domestic Double Next Season".
33. "Bayelsa Queens get N22m from Governor Dickson for NWPL title win". Pulse. 29 January 2019.
34. "How Rivers Angels won the Nigeria Women Premier League title at 2019 NWPL". Pulse.ng. 3 October 2019.
35. "Coronavirus: Nigeria Women League 2019/20 Season Cancelled". July 8, 2020.
36. "From The Nigeria Women Football League To Topscore In Europe: The Story Of Emueje Ogbiagbevha". 3 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
37. "Annam Imo named NWPL Player of the Season". Sport Compass. Retrieved 2019-02-08.

External links

• Official website
• NWFL Premiership on Twitter
• NWFL: Naija Ratels’ Bankole Olowookere bags December ‘Coach of the month award’ via The Informant247 Naija Sport

v t e Football in Nigeria
Nigeria Football Federation
Men	National team Olympic (U-23) U-20 U-17 Beach soccer Women National team U-20 U-17
League system	Men Premier League National League Nigeria Nationwide League 1, 2 Women Premiership Championship Nationwide League
Domestic cups	Men Federation Cup Super Cup Super 4 Women Women's Federation Cup Women's Super Cup
Awards	Footballer of the Year Top scorers
Lists	All-time Table Champions Men's clubs Women's clubs International footballers Foreign players Venues
Men's clubs Women's clubs Men's players Women's players Expatriate players Managers Referees Venues Seasons Records

• Nigeria Women Premier League
• Women's association football leagues in Nigeria
• Top level women's association football leagues in Africa
• Sports leagues established in 1990
• 1990 establishments in Nigeria
• NWFL Premiership