Rivers United F.C.

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Rivers United
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Full nameRivers United Football Club
NicknameThe Pride of Rivers
Founded2016; 10 years ago (2016)
GroundAdokiye Amiesimaka Stadium
Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria
Capacity38,000
ManagerFinidi George
LeagueNigeria Professional Football League
2024–25Nigeria Professional Football League, 2nd of 20

Rivers United Football Club is a Nigerian professional football club based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, that participates in the Nigerian Professional Football League, the highest level of domestic Nigerian football. The club was formed by the merger of Sharks F.C. and Dolphins F.C. in 2016. Their home stadium was the Yakubu Gowon Stadium, formerly Liberation Stadium, in Elekahia that has a seating capacity of 30,000.[1] They moved to the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in 2020. The stadium, renovated in 2020, has a capacity of 40,000.[2][3] There is also a female team, Rivers Angels F.C., which is one of the best in Nigeria and Africa.[4]

Rivers United FC has remained in the top flight since its first season. In the 2020-2021 CAF Confederation Cup season, Rivers defeated South African opponent Bloemfontein Celtic home and away to set up a highly anticipated matchup against neighbors Enyimba in the final qualifying round for a spot in the group stage. They lost the tie on penalties after a 1–1 aggregate scoreline[5]

History

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Rivers United was founded in 2016 after the Rivers state government got permission to merge Dolphins FC and Sharks FC. Both clubs were run by the state government and were experiencing financial difficulty.[6] Sharks were relegated to the First Division in 2015 while Dolphins had barely escaped relegation after drawing their final match.[7] Rivers United's crest contains both a shark and a dolphin as a result of the merge.[8]

Stanley Eguma was appointed coach and led them to a win in their first league match, 1–0 over Enyimba.[9]

The club finished second in the 2016 Nigerian Premier League which qualified them for the 2017 CAF Champions League for the first time.[10] A four-goal second-leg win over Mali's AS Bamako with Esosa Igbinoba and Bernard Ovoke each scoring a brace put Rivers past the preliminary round.[11] However, they were eliminated by Sudan's Al-Merrikh 4–3 on aggregate in the first round after losing a 3–0 first round lead.[12]

2021–22: Nigerian Professional League Champions

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File:Rivers United defender, Enyinnaya Godswill, during a CAF Confederation Cup match against Dreams FC at Godswill Akpabio Stadium on March 3, 2024.jpg
Enyinnaya Godswill in a jersey of Rivers United

On 25 June 2022, Rivers United won their first Nigeria Professional Football League title with four games to spare after Akwa United beat their nearest challengers, Plateau United 2–1 in Uyo.[13]

Rivers United ended the season with 77 points, breaking the league record of 73 points in a season.[14][15]

The 2021–22 Nigeria Professional Football League title is their first league title since the merger between Dolphins and Sharks FC of Port Harcourt in 2016.[16] It is also the first NPFL title by a Rivers-based side since the Dolphins won in 2011.[17][18]

Rivers United won 23 games, drew 8, and lost 7 of their 38 league games as they claimed the 2021-22 league title with 10 points ahead of their closest rivals, Plateau United.[19][20][21]

Rivers united players and officials were awarded $20,000 each by the Rivers state government for their league triumph in 2022 and were promised another US$40,000 if they qualify for the 2022-2023 Caf champions league group stage.[22][23]

Honours

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Domestic

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Performance in CAF competitions

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2017 – First Round
2022 – second Round
2022–23 – Second Round
2017 – Group stage
2020–21 – Play-off round
2021–22 – Play-off round
2022–23 – Quarter Finals

Staff

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Head coach

Assistant coach

Acting General Manager

  • Okey Kpalukwu

Welfare Secretary

  • Albert Chinwo

Media officer

Current squad

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Updated 8 February 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Abiodun Akande
2 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Muyiwa Fehintola
3 DF File:Flag of Ghana.svg GHA Emmanuel Ampiah
4 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA John Uche Akubueze
5 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Ebedebiri Endurance
6 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Enyinnaya Godswill
7 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Suleiman Abba
8 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Ukeme Williams
9 FW File:Flag of Liberia.svg LBR Mark Gibson
10 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Alex Oyowah
11 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Shedrack Asiegbu
12 FW File:Flag of Liberia.svg LBR Albert Korvah
13 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Adeleke Adekunle
16 GK File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Victor Soshima
17 MF File:Flag of Ghana.svg GHA Farouk Mohammed
18 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Chiamaka Madu
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Paul Odeh
20 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Joseph Onoja
21 GK File:Flag of Ghana.svg GHA Mutawakilu Seidu
23 MF File:Flag of Ghana.svg GHA Paul Acquah
25 MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Augustine Okejepha
26 FW File:Flag of Côte d'Ivoire.svg CIV Bernard Yao Kouassi
27 FW File:Flag of Ghana.svg GHA Samuel Antwi
28 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Nwangwa Nyima (Captain)
29 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Ossy Martins
30 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Chibuzor Ezeh
31 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Azeez Godswill
32 FW File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Andy Okpe
33 DF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Temple Emekayi
34 GK File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Osagie Onisodumeya
— MF File:Flag of Nigeria.svg NGA Paul Onobi

Rivers Angels

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Further information: Rivers Angels F.C.

Rivers Angels F.C. (formerly Larry Angels F.C.) is a Nigerian professional football club based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. They play in the Nigeria Women Premier League, the top flight division in the female soccer league system in Nigeria.

Notes

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