2026/27 NPFL Season to Begin in August, End in May 2027

2026/27 NPFL Season to Begin in August, End in May 2027

By Niyi Busari 

The Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) has tentatively scheduled the opening weekend of the 2026/27 season for August 27 to 29 following a joint stakeholders' meeting involving the National Sports Commission (NSC), the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), NPFL management and club owners in Abuja, BSNSports.com.ng reports.

Under the proposed football calendar, the new season will conclude on May 28, 2027, with the schedule also accommodating fixtures for the President Federation Cup as part of efforts to maintain a more organised and predictable domestic football programme.

A major highlight of the new campaign will be a record N1 billion prize for the league champions, following an announcement by NSC Chairman Shehu Dikko.

The prize money, the largest ever offered in Nigerian club football, forms part of wider reforms aimed at strengthening the commercial appeal of the NPFL, improving competitiveness and attracting greater investment into the domestic league.

The 2026/27 season will also feature four newly promoted clubs from the Nigeria National League (NNL).

Sporting Lagos, Inter Lagos, Ranchers Bees and Doma United secured promotion after the conclusion of the 2025/26 NNL season and will replace the four teams relegated from the top flight at the end of the just-concluded campaign.

The promoted clubs will join defending champions Enugu Rangers, who claimed their ninth league title after finishing top of the standings in the 2025/26 season.

The proposed calendar is expected to provide clubs with greater certainty in planning while reinforcing ongoing efforts by football authorities to improve the organisation and commercial growth of Nigeria's top-flight league.