The Nigerian University Games Association (NUGA) is widely regarded as one of the biggest sporting platforms for university students in Nigeria. It provides young athletes across institutions with an opportunity to compete, showcase their talents, and unite in the spirit of sportsmanship. The 2024 edition, however, did not take place as scheduled. Instead, it has been rescheduled to November 5–16, 2025, and will be hosted by the University of Jos, which is set to stage the 27th NUGA Championship after finalising key infrastructure.
For Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, what should have been a celebration of sporting excellence has turned into a bitter controversy. The institution’s final-year athletes, many of whom have been preparing for over a year, have now been excluded from the Games due to what officials describe as a sessional disparity.
Athletes who spoke to ACJOAU expressed their disappointment and frustration regarding the situation. According to them, they had been training intensely since last year with hopes of representing the university on the biggest stage. They revealed that when registration opened in August, their names were uploaded to the NUGA portal and initially appeared as “pending.” Soon after, the status changed to “disqualified,” which they initially assumed to be a technical error. It was later confirmed that the change was a result of NUGA’s screening process, where it was discovered that OAU was operating in the 2023/2024 academic session while the Games had been scheduled to align with the 2024/2025 session.
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One athlete explained that the problem began when the committee concluded that the OAU finalists belonged to the 2023/2024 session and therefore could not compete. He stated that this was especially painful because other universities had final-year students, many of whom had just completed their exams, participating freely without similar restrictions. He recalled that at the last NUGA Games, OAU also had finalists who had just completed their exams but still competed, as their student status had been confirmed through the JAMB portal. To him, the refusal to adopt that same method this time was suspicious and targeted.
Another student described the process as unfair, stressing that all athletes had uploaded their admission letters and identification cards on the NUGA portal. With such documents available, he believed it should have been easy to confirm who was still a student and who had graduated. Instead, NUGA chose not to check these details, which, in his view, showed a deliberate attempt to frustrate OAU. Some athletes pointed fingers at internal politics, linking the situation to the transition from the former Sports Director, who allegedly did not want to vacate her position and may be working against the new leadership.
The athletes also explained that taking the issue to OAU management would achieve little since the accreditation committee operates independently. They noted that, even though the Vice-Chancellor is aware of the situation, no concrete steps have been taken to resolve it. According to them, management could only appeal to NUGA, which has so far refused to shift ground. With the zonal preliminaries scheduled to begin soon, they fear that years of training, sacrifice, and hope may end up wasted. Many believe that the best chance of reversing the decision lies in drawing attention to the matter through the media and social platforms.
Responding to the controversy, the university’s Director of Sports, Dr Ogunlusi, explained that the issue arose strictly from the difference in academic sessions. He said that NUGA is planning the Games for the 2024/2025 session, and by that arrangement, any student still classified under the 2023/2024 session would not be considered. He confirmed that when NUGA officials reached out to some randomly selected OAU students for verification, a few mistakenly gave the impression that the university had already completed its 2024/2025 session and was about to begin the 2025/2026 session. This fuelled the accreditors’ doubts until the school produced official releases proving otherwise.
Despite presenting evidence such as a letter from the Registrar, the academic calendar, and details from the school portal, the Director said that NUGA still refused to recognise OAU finalists. He stressed that the decision was not a general rejection of final-year students but a result of the sessional mismatch. He pointed out that OAU was not the only institution affected; universities like UNIPORT and others still operating in the 2022/2023 session were also barred from presenting their finalists and penultimate-year students, as NUGA insisted on accrediting only those clearly within the 2024/2025 session.
On the matter of sabotage, Dr Ogunlusi acknowledged that a document earlier removed in Ife somehow resurfaced in Jos during the accreditation process, which created further confusion. However, he insisted that the core issue was about academic sessions, not deliberate targeting. He admitted that the situation was painful for the athletes who had dedicated time and energy to training without financial support, and while compensating them would be difficult, he deeply sympathised with their plight.
He added that pursuing any legal challenge at this stage would risk OAU missing the Games entirely, so the priority is to participate in the current edition with eligible athletes while making stronger preparations for the next one. According to him, one of the key solutions is ensuring that OAU has stronger representation in the NUGA council, where critical decisions are made. He emphasised that he was not in conflict with his predecessor, describing the challenges as part of life and insisting that sports administration is about solving problems, not fuelling rivalries.
To the athletes, he gave a message of encouragement, reminding them that in sports, sometimes one wins and sometimes one loses. He urged them to see this as one of life’s lessons, which should strengthen their resolve for the future. He also assured them that efforts would be made to revive OAU’s Sports Festival in the new session, rekindle campus sporting culture, and improve the maintenance of facilities and equipment.
Meanwhile, the Dean of Student Affairs, Professor John Adeolu Odedire, stated that he had not been fully briefed about the developments. He admitted that, from his perspective, academic session differences should not ordinarily affect NUGA participation but acknowledged that the association may be applying other undisclosed criteria. He emphasised that since details were still sketchy, he would engage the Director of Sports to get clearer information. For now, he said he was not in a hurry, noting that there was still some time before the Games, and he would work to understand the full situation.
As of September 23, 2025, accreditation continues in Jos, with some OAU athletes cleared while finalists remain excluded. The matter has left a cloud of uncertainty for these excluded athletes. For many of the affected students, this is not just about missing a competition but losing the opportunity to crown years of sacrifice with recognition at the national level.