Championship Final Results
De Wills Baseball Club of Bayelsa emerged as the champion of the 2026 Super Five Baseball Championship after defeating Delta State, the defending champions, in the final match. The game was played at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja.
The title victory concluded a league season that featured 17 clubs competing across centers in Kwara, Rivers, and other parts of the country. Following the league phase, the top five teams were invited to Abuja to contest the Super Five Championship for the 2026 national title.
Player Assessments and National Team Selection
Nigeria’s national team head coach Shinya Tomonari stated that the championship provided his first major opportunity to assess a wide pool of Nigerian players. Appointed on June 8, Tomonari said his immediate objective was to build a team capable of becoming the strongest and most respected baseball side in Africa.
Working alongside Japanese analysts Daisuke Hoshikawa and Takumu Yamada, Tomonari said players were assessed using the TrackMan system to measure and quantify performance. Based on this data, 23 national team candidates would be selected, with individualized development plans created for each player.
Tomonari added that several Nigerian players would be invited to Japan in November to train with professional clubs and leading university programmes. These preparations are part of the intensifying efforts ahead of the African Championship scheduled for next July.
Uche Odozor, President of the Nigeria Baseball and Softball Federation (NBSF) and WBSC Africa, stated that the championship was designed to bring together leading teams from the national league. He said the competition provided an opportunity to identify players with potential to represent Nigeria at the international level.
Odozor disclosed that Japanese analysts were brought in to assess players during the championship, with some best performers expected to travel to Japan in November for further training ahead of Nigeria’s bid to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. He added that the federation was working with the National Sports Commission to expand baseball across the country, particularly through schools and military barracks, while using the sport to create opportunities for young Nigerians.
Odozor said the federation was introducing a Baseballership programme and strengthening the sport’s presence in Nigerian universities. Tomonari, who has previously coached in Ghana, Tanzania, and South Sudan, said he had spent about 30 years working in African baseball and was implementing the Baseballership Education programme in 13 African countries.
Reactions from Captains
De Wills captain Adebisi David expressed delight at winning the championship, saying selections for the national team to play through qualifiers for Olympics 2028 were on. David credited his teammates, coaches, and management for the victory and expressed confidence that continued investment in the sport would produce more Nigerian players capable of reaching Major League Baseball.
Delta captain Suleman Abdulrahman Bala questioned the change in competition format following his side’s defeat, stating the competition was initially expected to be decided by accumulated league points before being changed to championship games. Bala maintained that Delta’s defeat did not mean the team’s standard had declined, saying, “We’ve been the champion for years, so for them to win us today doesn’t mean we have dropped in standard. It only means they are working”.