The 2023/2024 Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) got underway in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, with the debutants, Ekiti Queens FC holding the defending champions, Delta Queens FC of Asaba to a goalless draw.
It was the first time that a team from Ekiti State would be competing in an elite football league of the country and playing such a match on home soil since the creation of the state in 1996.
The match played at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, Ado Ekiti, saw the wife of Ekiti State Governor, Dr Olayemi Oyebanji, who was joined on the pitch by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president, Alhaji Ibrahim Gusau and NWFL chairperson, Ms Nkechi Obi performed the historic ceremonial kick-off of the season opener.
Speaking after the interesting and entertaining match watched by a capacity crowd, the Ekiti first lady assured the people of the state that the Oyebanji Administration would support Ekiti Queens, fondly called BAORESS, to get to the pinnacle of women’s football in the country.
She praised the team, who were playing in the elite female league for the first time, for their good performance against the experienced Delta Queen, saying Governor Oyebanji is committed to transforming sports from mere recreation to a veritable tool of job creation and economic empowerment for the youths.