N50m Ratels Foundation Flying Officer’s Cup kicks-off Oct 10

The 2021 edition of Flying Officer’s Cup sponsored by Ratels Sports Foundation is scheduled to hold from October 10 to 24 in Abuja.

The pre-season tournament is organised annually to immortalize late Tolulope Arotile, the first female combat helicopter pilot in the Nigerian Army who died in an accident at the Nigeria Airforce base Kaduna on July 14, 2020.

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Addressing sports journalists Wednesday in Abuja, the Chairman of Ratels Sports Foundation, Barrister Paul Edeh said his foundation has earmarked N50m for this year’s tournament.

He disclosed that the number of clubs for the tournament has increased from eight to 16 just as he said two clubs from Ghana and Benin Republic will be attending the pre-season competition.

The proprietor of Nigeria Women Premier League (NWPL) side, Naija Ratels FC also said even as Ratels Sports Foundation is bankrolling the tournament, public spirited individuals and corporate organisations can also lend their support.

“N50m is budgeted for this tournament because we want to make it a special event. We are introducing new things to make it a memorable experience for everyone.

“The overall winners will take home a cash prize of N1m but if one of the foreign clubs emerges champion, they will receive N2m prize. The runners up will get N500,000 while third and fourth placed teams will receive N300,000 and N200,000 respectively.

“There will also be individual cash prizes and N100,000 donation to each of the 16 clubs. They will also be given branded jerseys. We are going to accommodate and feed the clubs for the duration of the tournament,” said Edeh.

Leading NWPL clubs like Edo Queens, Rivers Angels, Nasarawa Amazons, Delta Queens, Bayelsa Queens, FC Robo, and host Naija Ratels are among clubs that will be taking part in the NFF sanctioned tournament.