FirstBank Grassroots Football: Babayanju’s 7-1 Rout Puts Oshodi Talents in Spotlight

Posted : 11 August 2026

Babayanju Street produced a stunning attacking display at the Lagos State Street Soccer Stars Oshodi 2026, demolishing Oluwani Street 7-1 to book a place in the quarter-finals of the grassroots competition.

The emphatic round-of-16 victory was the biggest result of the tournament so far and underlined the quality of young talents emerging from communities across Lagos.

The competition, holding at Oloyede Street, Oshodi, has brought together 64 teams and 640 players under the theme, “Oshodi Hidden Talents”, providing an avenue for promising footballers to showcase their abilities before scouts, academies and clubs.

While Babayanju Street stole the headlines with their seven-goal demolition, Oremeji Street also secured a quarter-final ticket after edging hosts Oloyede Street 3-2 in another entertaining round-of-16 encounter.

Toheeb Tairu was named Man of the Match following an impressive individual performance that helped his team advance.

Tairu said his ambition was to continue the winning run and ultimately lift the trophy.

“It is a very good move for us and I believe we can do better than this. We can proceed to the semi-finals,” he said.

“My expectation is just to win the final. That is my expectation, and to be one of the best,” Tairu added.

The tournament, organised in partnership with FirstBank through its First@Sports initiative, is designed to combine football development with youth empowerment, healthy living and community engagement.

It began on Aug. 2 and is scheduled to run until Aug. 15, with participating teams competing not only for prizes but also for opportunities to attract the attention of football academies and professional clubs.

Senior Special Assistant to the Lagos State Governor on Grassroots Sports Development, Adebanji Atewogboye, said the initiative was conceived as a way of engaging young people during the long school holiday.

“We want to keep the youths busy during this long holiday. For the next two weeks, we are keeping them together through football,” he said.

Atewogboye explained that the competition was also intended to provide a positive alternative to crime, drug abuse and other social vices.

He said the talent-discovery component was already generating interest among scouts and football development programmes.

“Many people are scouting them for academies and clubs that can help push their careers further,” he said.

According to him, the growing popularity of the tournament has prompted other local governments to express interest in hosting similar grassroots competitions.

“This shows that what we are doing as a state is yielding good results for Lagosians,” Atewogboye said.

He acknowledged the challenges involved in organising a competition involving hundreds of young players but commended the task force for maintaining order throughout the tournament.

The tournament is powered by Atewogboye, popularly known as SKIBANJ, with Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu as Chief Host.

A total prize money of N3.5 million is at stake, with the champions receiving N1 million, runners-up N750,000 and third-place finishers N500,000.

Individual prizes include N100,000 each for the Golden Boot, Most Valuable Player, Young Player and Goal of the Tournament.

The Best Street Team, Fair Play Team and Community Spirit awards will also attract N100,000 each, while standout performers in every match receive N10,000 and recognition.

With the quarter-finals now in sight, Babayanju Street’s 7-1 statement has raised expectations, but beyond the battle for the trophy, the competition continues to serve as a platform for discovering the next generation of football talents from Lagos communities.

FirstBank Grassroots Football: Babayanju’s 7-1 Rout Puts Oshodi Talents in Spotlight

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