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Lobi Stars F.C.

Lobi Stars F.C.
Lobi Stars F.C.
Full nameLobi Stars Football Club
Nickname(s)Alia Boys
Founded1981 by late Bishop A.A. Usuh
GroundAper Aku Stadium
Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria
Capacity8,000
ChairmanDr Philip Nongu
ManagerMika Lönnström
LeagueNigeria Premier Football League
2023–24Nigeria Premier Football League, 6th of 20

Lobi Stars Football Club (formerly known as Mosquito football club, Lobi Bank, BBL Hawks, and Hawks) is a Nigerian professional soccer club based in Makurdi, Benue. The club competes in the Nigerian Professional Football League. The Stars' home is the 8,000-seater Aper Aku Stadium.[1]

History

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Founded as Hawks of Makurdi in 1981 by the Benue State sports council, the club was renamed Benue Breweries Limited (BBL) Hawks Football Club, when the state-owned Breweries acquired the club in 1985. There was another change again when the state-owned Lobi Bank acquired the club in 1990 and named it Lobi Bank Football Club.[2]

In 1999, the Nigeria Football League was played in a new format which saw the top four teams squaring up in a knockout Super League at the National Stadium, Surulere. Lobi Stars won the maiden edition of the Nigerian Super League under coach Godwin Koko Uwua's management. Lobi Stars won its first and only FA Cup title in 2003 after beating Sharks FC of Port-Harcourt.[3]

In 2005 they reached the finals of the domestic FA Cup where they lost to Enyimba.[4]

They finished the 2008–09 season with 13 wins, 10 draws and 15 losses after winning a game on appeal against Enugu Rangers, avoiding the drop by one point.[5]

In August 2009, the Benue State government announced the club will be leased to private ownership, ending direct support from the State, but that never materialised.[5] Lobi finished 3rd in Glo premier league in 2012. They also reached the Federation Cup final that season but lost to Heartland F.C. of Owerri.[6]

Honours

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Performance in CAF competitions

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2000 – Group stage
2018–19 – Group stage
2004 – Second round
2006 – Second round
2012 – First round
2010 – First round

Current squad

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As of 8 February 2024[7]

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 Nigeria NGA Daniel Atsaka
2 DF Nigeria NGA John Lazarus
31 DF Nigeria NGA Solomon Kwambe
6 DF Nigeria NGA Jimmy Iteji
10 FW Nigeria NGA Stanley Oganbor
8 MF Nigeria NGA Kumaga Suur
9 FW Nigeria NGA Barnabas Imenger
11 FW Nigeria NGA Samuel Tiza Iorwuese
12 GK Nigeria NGA Emmanuel Daniel
13 DF Nigeria NGA Orji Kalu Okagbue
14 FW Nigeria NGA Dabani Godwin Alao
16 FW Nigeria NGA Waheed Adebayo
17 DF Nigeria NGA Moses Tsehuan
No. Pos. Nation Player
20 MF Nigeria NGA Ajibola Adeleke
19 CF Nigeria NGA Ossy Martins
21 MF Nigeria NGA Christian Madu
25 DF Nigeria NGA Nnamdi Frank
33 MF Nigeria NGA Ifeanyi Assurance
22 MF Nigeria NGA Onah Peter
27 DF Nigeria NGA Monday Akile
28 MF Nigeria NGA Ahmadu Liman
5 FW Nigeria NGA Yem Reubem
30 GK Nigeria NGA Akor Itodo
33 DF Nigeria NGA Agbanyi Vershima
34 CB Nigeria NGA Arinze Ogbonna
37 FW Nigeria NGA Olorintoba Segun
35 FW Nigeria NGA Itim Paul


Coaching staff

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As of 8 November 2024

Name Role
Finland Mika Lönnström Head coach
Nigeria Tar Akombo Assistant coach
Nigeria Save Okoh Goalkeeping coach
Nigeria Benjamin Bemgba Jiki Coach
Nigeria Daniel Amokachi Technical advisor

Former managers

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Notable players

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References

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  1. ^ "Lobi Stars Football Club History". sitesng.com. Archived from the original on 2021-05-19. Retrieved 2021-05-19.
  2. ^ "Dominic Iorfa Online : About Lobi Stars". Dominic Iorfa Online. Archived from the original on 2018-07-06. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
  3. ^ Omuya, Kevin (2022-03-19). "Lobi Stars players, owner, stadium, coach, trophies, world rankings". SportsBrief - Sport news. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
  4. ^ "Nigeria: Enyimba Break Fa Cup Jinx".
  5. ^ a b Adigun, Taye Hassan. "Lobi Stars". Felele247 Football. Archived from the original on 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2021-05-18.
  6. ^ KickOff. "Heartland FC and Lobi Stars FC reach Federation Cup final". KickOff. Archived from the original on 2022-11-22. Retrieved 2022-11-22.
  7. ^ "CAF Champions League squad". Archived from the original on 2018-12-01. Retrieved 2018-12-25.
  8. ^ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "NFT player — National team & Club appearances: Okoye, Kelechi". national-football-teams.com. National Football Teams. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
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