The 23rd National Sports Festival, set for Enugu in 2026, has secured key sponsorship deals as preparations ramp up for what is being described as a landmark edition of the Games.
PremiumTrust Bank and BetKing have formally committed to supporting the multi-sport event, following a high-level meeting in Enugu involving senior government and corporate stakeholders.
The strategic session brought together the Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Hon. Bukola Olopade, Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah, PremiumTrust Bank CEO Emmanuel Efe Emefienim, and BetKing Managing Director Gossy Ukanwoke.
Discussions centred on infrastructure readiness, logistics, youth engagement, and the legacy potential of the 2026 event.
PremiumTrust Bank, headline sponsor of the Gateway Games Ogun 2024, is returning in the same capacity for Enugu 2026, while BetKing signed up as a major sponsor
DG of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Bukola Olopade ( L), Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah (M), PremiumTrust Bank CEO Emmanuel Efe Emefienim at the Governor’s office, Enugu, Nigeria.
NSC Director General Olopade hailed the partnerships as a product of Governor Mbah’s leadership and the broader national vision under the Tinubu administration.
“The confidence shown by PremiumTrust Bank and BetKing is not accidental. It reflects Governor Mbah’s progressive agenda and the Renewed Hope initiative of President Tinubu, which recognises sport as a driver of national development,” Olopade said.
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Olopade added that the NSC is working to position sport as a key contributor to GDP growth, employment, and youth development, in line with broader economic reforms.
“This is a turning point for Nigerian sport. We are moving from viewing sport as a side project to treating it as a national asset. He said.
PremiumTrust Bank MD, Emmanuel Emefienim, CON, reiterated the bank’s strategic commitment to developing both grassroots and elite sports in Nigeria. BetKing’s MD, Gossy Ukanwoke, also emphasized the growing synergy between the private sector and national sports development.
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Since its reorganisation, the NSC, led by Chairman Mallam Shehu Dikko and Olopade, has pursued a strategy to elevate the role of sport in Nigeria’s economic transformation plans.
Enugu is preparing to host the National Sports Festival for the first time in 2026 – and the first time the competition will be held in the South East since 1998.
