The Spires 5-Aside Naija Street Soccer Tournament has brought IHS, a telecommunications infrastructure company, on board as a partner for the 2026 Lagos state championship scheduled for October.
IHS joins tournament partnership
The partnership was formally announced on Wednesday at an event organised with the Lagos State Sports Commission (LSSC). The gathering was attended by LSSC Director-General Lekan Fatodu, senior commission officials and members of the media.
Victor Ottah, public relations manager at Spires Media, said the agreement was an ideal fit. He explained that IHS operates more than 16,000 mobile telecommunications towers and sites nationwide and would help expand the Spires 5-Aside initiative beyond football through several new programmes.
Ottah called the arrangement “a partnership made in heaven”, pointing to IHS’s role in connecting communities through telecommunications. He said the company’s collaboration with Spires Media would bring major innovations and give the street-soccer project fresh momentum.
Sports commission promises support
Fatodu welcomed IHS’s decision to work with Spires Media, describing the tournament organiser as a credible brand capable of advancing the Naija Street Soccer Tournament.
He said the collaboration had been needed for some time and noted that the commission had followed Spires Media’s work on the Spires 5-Aside project for three years. In his assessment, it is the most professionally managed five-a-side competition in Nigeria and throughout the West African sub-region.
The LSSC director-general also committed the commission to assisting with this year’s championship.
- The commission will offer all support available within its powers.
- It will work to create suitable conditions for IHS and Spires Media to stage the 2026 state championship.
Third season set for October
Dr Bankole Allibay, the founder of Spires 5-Aside and chief executive of Spires Media, said he was enthusiastic about the possibilities created by the new alliance. He thanked IHS for placing its confidence in the project, adding that Spires Media had operated it independently for the previous three years and that its results were already clear. He said the partnership raised the prospect of achieving substantially more.
The next unveiling event connected to the Spires 5-Aside and IHS alliance is scheduled to be held with the Lagos State Football Association on Tuesday, 1 September 2026.
The tournament’s third season will feature 16 Lagos teams distributed across five divisions. Competition is due to begin in Lagos on 24 October.
