Nigeria - List of Cup Winners

The earliest cup for senior sides was the Mulford Cup, founded in 1938 and played between Lagos clubs. It was competed for until 1952. Before, the Bergedorf Cup (later renamed Zard Cup) was founded, contested between junior sides in Lagos. In 1948 the Zard Cup was re-assigned to a competition for secondary schools.
During the war years, the War Memorial Challenge Cup was launched and succeeded by the Governor's Cup in 1945 (with 9 teams, all from Lagos, entering the initial competition (other source: 13 participants); the first team from outside Lagos to enter were Aebokuta in 1946, followed by Port Harcourt, Calabar and Warri in 1948), which was renamed Challenge Cup after Nigeria's independence and developed into the main cup competition of Nigeria. It initially was played in four regional areas (North, East, West and Lagos Capital Territory) who sent their winners to the final play-offs in Lagos. In 1963 the Western Region was split into two, with the Mid-West becoming the fifth region. In 1958, Port Harcourt Red Devils beat Ikot Ekpene 18-0 for the record score in the competition; Ibadan once defeated Ekiti 17-0.

Prior to 1945, various provincial trophies were at stake in different parts of Nigeria: the Comet Cup (in the North), Unafrico Cup (in the East), Pilot Cup (in Lagos), and Thermogene Cup (in the West; involving (city selections from?) Benin, Ibadan, Abeokuta, Warri). Zik's Athletic Club (ZAC) won the City of Lagos Cup 1932 (apparently not a 'senior' competition).

FA Cup

War Memorial Challenge Cup
1942 ZAC Bombers
other years not known
Governor's Cup
1945 Marine                       1-0 Corinthians
1946 Lagos Railways               3-1 Port Harcourt
1947 Marine                       3-1 Lagos Railways
1948 Lagos Railways               1-0 Warri
1949 Lagos Railways               3-0 Port Harcourt
1950 Lagos UAC [*]                3-2 Port Harcourt
1951 Lagos Railways               3-2 Plateau United (Mid-West)
1952 Lagos PAN Bank               6-0 Warri (Mid-West)
1953 Kano Pillars                 2-1 Lagos Dynamos
FA Cup
1954 Calabar                      3-0 Kano Pillars
1955 Port Harcourt FC             4-1 Warri
1956 Lagos Railways       
1957 Lagos Railways               5-1 Zaria            [!]       
1958 Port Harcourt FC             6-0 Federal United
1959 Ibadan Lions                 1-0 Lagos Police
Nigeria Challenge Cup
1960 Lagos ECN                    5-2 Ibadan Lions    
1961 Ibadan Lions                 1-0 Lagos UAC 
1962 Police                       1-0 Plateau United   [+]
1963 Port Harcourt FC             1-0 Plateau United   [+]
1964 Lagos Railways               3-1 Plateau United   [+]
1965 Lagos ECN                    3-1 Plateau United   [+]
1966 Ibadan Lions                 w/o Plateau United   [+]
1967 Stationery Stores            3-1 Plateau United   [+]
1968 Stationery Stores            3-1 Warri            [+] [in replay]
1969 Ibadan Lions                 5-1 Warri
1970 Lagos ECN                    3-1 Plateau United
1971 WNDC Ibadan                  2-1 Enugu Rangers
1972 Bendel Insurance         2-2 3-2 Mighty Jets      [-]
1973   no competition
1974 Enugu Rangers                2-0 Mighty Jets      [-]
1975 Enugu Rangers                1-0 IICC Shooting Stars
1976 Enugu Rangers                2-0 Alyufsalam Rocks (Ilorin)
1977 IICC Shooting Stars          awd Racca Rovers     [awarded 2-0; Racca walked off at 1-0]
1978 Bendel Insurance             3-0 Enugu Rangers
1979 IICC Shooting Stars          2-0 Sharks
1980 Bendel Insurance             1-0 Stationery Stores
1981 Enugu Rangers                2-0 Bendel Insurance
1982 Stationery Stores            4-1 Niger Tornadoes
1983 Enugu Rangers                0-0 DIC Bees         [5-4 pen]
1984 Leventis United              1-0 Abiola Babes
1985 Abiola Babes                 drw BCC Lions [?]    [6-5 pen]
1986 Leventis United              1-0 Abiola Babes
1987 Abiola Babes                 1-1 Enugu Rangers    [7-6 pen]
1988 Iwuanyanwu Nationale         3-0 Flash Flamingoes
1989 BCC Lions                    1-0 Iwuanyanwu Nationale
1990 Stationery Stores            0-0 Enugu Rangers    [5-4 pen]
1991 El-Kanemi Warriors           3-2 Kano Pillars
1992 El-Kanemi Warriors           1-0 Stationery Stores
1993 BCC Lions                    1-0 Plateau United 
1994 BCC Lions                    1-0 Julius Berger 
1995 Shooting Stars SC            2-0 Katsina United 
1996 Julius Berger                1-0 Katsina United   [aet]
1997 BCC Lions                    1-0 Katsina United
1998 Wikki Tourists               0-0 Plateau United   [3-2 pen]
1999 Plateau United               1-0 Iwuanyanwu Nationale  
2000 Niger Tornadoes              1-0 Enugu Rangers
2001 Dolphin FC                   2-0 El-Kanemi Warriors     
2002 Julius Berger                3-0 Yobe Stars
2003 Lobi Stars                   2-0 Port Harcourt Sharks
2004 Dolphin FC                   1-0 Enugu Rangers
2005 Enyimba                      1-1 Lobi Stars       [aet, 6-5 pen]
2006 Dolphin FC                   2-2 Bendel Insurance [aet, 5-3 pen]
2007 Dolphin FC                   1-1 Enugu Rangers    [aet, 3-2 pen]
2008 Ocean Boys                   2-2 Gombe United     [aet, 7-6 pen]
2009 Enyimba                      1-0 Sharks
2010 Kaduna United                3-3 Enyimba          [aet, 3-2 pen]
2011 Heartland                    1-0 Enyimba
2012 Heartland                    2-1 Lobi Stars

[!] Warri beat Igala 18-0 in an early round, the record result in the competition.
[*] UAC = United African Company; Lagos UAC also listed as GO Union.
[-] losing finalists in 1972 and 1974 have also been given as Plateau United;
    both Plateau and Mighty Jets are from Jos.
[+] according to other sources, Plateau United lost the cup final of 1968 but
    not those of 1963 and 1967; [Bak 97] says Mighty Jets lost 5 finals between
    1962 and 1968.

Number of Wins (67; does not include 1942)

 8 Shooting Stars (Ibadan) [includes Ibadan Lions and WNDC (now defunct)]

 7 Lagos Railways
 
 5 Enugu Rangers 

 4 BCC Lions (Gboko) 
   Dolphin FC (Port Harcourt) [formerly known as Eagle Cement]
   Stationery Stores (Lagos)

 3 Bendel Insurance (Benin City) 
   Heartland (Owerri) [formerly known as Iwuanyanwu Nationale]
   Lagos ECN (later renamed NEPA)
   Port Harcourt FC [now defunct]

 2 Abiola Babes (Mashood) [now defunct]
   El-Kanemi Warriors (Maiduguri)
   Enyimba (Aba)
   Julius Berger (Lagos) 
   Leventis United (Ibadan) 
   Marine [now NPA]

 1 Calabar 
   Kaduna United
   Kano Pillars
   Lagos PAN Bank 
   Lagos UAC
   Lobi Stars (Makurdi)
   Niger Tornadoes (Minna)
   Ocean Boys (Brass)  
   Plateau United (Jos)
   Police (Abuja) 
   Wikki Tourists (Bauchi)


Losing finalists known to be defunct:
Alyufsalam Rocks (Ilorin)
DIC Bees (Kaduna)

Bergedorf/Zard Cup
for junior sides
1938 ZAC                          4-3 LTC Junior       [replay after draw]
1942 ZAC 2nd XI ('Spitfires')
for secondary schools
1948 Methodist Boys HS (Lagos)    2-0 Baptist Academy
1949 St Gregory's College         bt  Baptist Academy
1950 St Gregory's College
1951 St Gregory's College         bt  Baptist Academy
1952 St Gregory's College         bt  Baptist Academy
1953 King's College 
1954 St Gregory's College
1955 Baptist Academy              bt  St Gregory's College 
1960 Ahmadiyya College            bt  CSM Grammar School

About this document

Sources: Vanguard Daily, [Akp 85], [ArG 04]

Prepared and maintained by Djidenou Medjigbodo and Hans Schöggl for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation

Authors: Djidenou Medjigbodo (d.medjigbodo@ucl.ac.uk) and Hans Schöggl
Last updated: 4 Oct 2012

(C) Copyright Djidenou Medjigbodo, Hans Schöggl and RSSSF 1997/2012
You are free to copy this document in whole or part provided that proper acknowledgement is given to the authors. All rights reserved.