Nigeria Professional Football League History
The Nigeria Professional Football League, Nigeria’s 1st Division football league, stems from 1972, but it made a massive and most important step towards professionalism in 1990. The rise of a professional football league in Nigeria also coincided with the success of the national team. The Super Eagles managed to qualify for the Last 16 Round of the World Cup on two occasions (1994 and 1998), lift the African Cup of Nations trophy (1994) and even win the Olympics Gold Medal in Atlanta (1996).
The league changed its name a few times during the course of its existence. It started off as the Nigerian Professional League (1990-1993), then became the Nigerian Premier League (1993-2000), went to the Nigerian Premiership (2000-2003), went back to the Nigerian Premier League (2003-2013), until it eventually settled down to the Nigeria Professional Football League. It is the largest club competition in Nigeria, ahead of the Nigerian League Cup. The popularity alone is enough to warrant searching for Nigeria League predictions.
Teams in NPFL 2025
The 2024/25 NPFL season concluded with Remo Stars taking the title for the first time in their history. In fact, they managed to do it with three matches to spare.
As far as the 2025/26 Nigeria Premier League season goes, it will still include a total of 20 clubs. The clubs will be all in one league, no more division to two groups as it used to be the case a couple of seasons before. .
Last year, four teams were relegated, including Lobi Stars, Sunshine Stars, Akwa United, and Heartland. They will be replaced by Warri Wolves, Wikki Tourists, Barau, and Kun Khalifat. We also want to mention that Remo Stars, the previous season’s winners, have been themselves promoted just 4 years ago. Having an idea about the background of the league should also help when making your Nigeria Premier League prediction.
NPFL 2025/26 Favourites and Odds
At the start of the season, Nigeria League predictions pointed towards Remo Stars retaining the title. However, winning back-to-back titles is not as easy as one would think and Remo Stars will have to fight long and hard to retain the title.
Enyimba is the most successful club in Nigerian football history, so they are always going to be in the mix. Finally, Plateau United were the surprise team of the season last year, making them a dark horse among the favourites to capture the NFPL title.
Past NPFL Champions
By winning the 2024/25 NPFL title, Remo Stars became champions for the first time in their history. Enyimba (8 titles) and Enugu Rangers (7 titles) are the most successful teams in Nigerian football. Enyimba is the only Nigerian club that was able to win the CAF Champions League and have done so on two separate occasions (2003 and 2004).
When making your future Nigeria League predictions, it helps knowing the history and which were the past winners of the competition.
