Team Nigeria Eyes Title Defense at 2025 Pan African Youth Scrabble Championship in Kenya

Team Nigeria will be represented by 10 talented players, seven males and three females at the highly anticipated 2nd Pan African Youth Scrabble Championship (AYSC) taking place in Machakos County, Kenya.

President of the Nigeria Scrabble Federation (NSF), Engineer Olobatoke Aka, revealed this on Tuesday in Abuja, confirming that the team will depart for Nairobi on Monday via ASKY Airline. The championship is scheduled for August 14 to 17, 2025, and will be hosted at Brighton International School in Syokimau, Machakos County.

The 10-player Nigerian team heading to the continental championship includes:

Female Players:

• Sophia Ekeruche
• Joy Eberechukwu Nwabuzor
• Eliana Igbe

Male Players:

• Saviour Onazi
• Hassan Olojoku
• Sufyan Olojoku
• Abdulqudus Aliu
• Khalid Olosun
• Prestige Archibong
• Damilola Adeleke

In a show of state-level support, Kwara State is sponsoring four players, Bayelsa State is backing two players, while Lagos, Edo, Niger, and Akwa Ibom are each supporting one player.

Engineer Aka, who is leading Nigeria’s delegation to the competition, expressed confidence in the team’s ability to repeat their remarkable 2023 performance. “Nigeria will dominate the competition just as they did two years ago, winning all the titles at stake,” he said.

The Pan African Youth Scrabble Championship (AYSC) is organized by the Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA) and will feature two age categories: Under-15 and Under-19, with more than 150 players from 11 African countries expected to participate.

AYSC 2025 Prize Breakdown:

U-19 Category:

• 1st Place: $1,000, trophy, and a laptop
• 2nd Place: $500, trophy, and a laptop
• 3rd Place: $300, trophy, and a tablet
• 4th–10th Places: $150 to branded gift bags

U-15 Category:

• 1st Place: $500, trophy, and a laptop
• 2nd Place: $300, trophy, and a tablet
• 3rd Place: $200, trophy, and a tablet
• 4th–10th Places: $100 to gift bags

The 2023 edition was hosted in Lagos, Nigeria, where the host nation dominated the tournament. David Ojih and Prestige Archibong won the Under-19 and Under-15 categories respectively. That championship, held at Chrisland School, Lekki, welcomed participants from Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, and Liberia.

The 2025 edition promises tougher competition and wider participation, but Nigeria’s track record positions them as favorites once again.

About the Host Location:

Machakos County, often referred to as Masaku, is the first administrative capital of Kenya. With a population of over 63,000 in its urban center as of 2019, the county boasts a mix of cultural heritage and educational development.

Brighton International School, the championship venue, is a leading day and boarding school in Syokimau, offering both the Kenyan CBC curriculum and Cambridge International Education.

As Nigeria aims to extend its continental dominance, all eyes will be on the young scrabble stars to deliver another historic outing in East Africa.