Bendel Insurance F.C.

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Bendel Insurance
Full nameBendel Insurance Football Club
Nickname(s)Vipers, The Benin Arsenal
Founded1972;53 years ago (1972)
Ground Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium
Benin City, Nigeria
Capacity12,000 [1] [2]
ChairmanPhilip Shaibu
Deputy Governor,
Edo State [3]
ManagerGreg Ikhenoba [4]
League Nigeria Premier Football League [5]
2023–24 9th

Bendel Insurance Football Club is a football club based in Benin City, Nigeria. The club plays in the Nigeria Premier Football League. They were originally known as the Vipers of Benin. They play their home matches at Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, [6] [7] which has a capacity of 12,000. They are the current champions of the Federation Cup after defeating Enugu Rangers 1–0 at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba on June 21, 2023.

Contents

History

Created by Dr. Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia, Bendel Insurance was one of the founding members of the Nigerian Premier League in 1972. [8]

The team had its first month of the 2007–08 season delayed because of a management dispute over who controlled the team. [9] [10] The crisis led to two different clubs claiming the name Insurance. They were relegated at the end of the 2007–08 season after finishing in last place, the first relegation from the top level in the team's history.

In August 2008, the ownership crisis was settled and the Edo State government took control. Thus the name officially reverted to Bendel Insurance Football Club.

However, the club's financial problems continued throughout the season. In February 2009, Insurance was banned from using their stadium temporarily because it was not up to league standards. In March, they were one of eight teams threatened with having their participation suspended due to a backlog of debts and fines. [11] Finally, they were exiled to Ilorin, North Central Nigeria, for their final home game of the season after crowd trouble in a 1–1 tie against Shooting Stars FC that put an end to their promotion chances. The reason for Bendel Insurance's breakdown was because of the ownership situations. [12]

Bendel Insurance were promoted to the top flight for the 2019 season after spending over ten years in lower divisions. [8] They were relegated to the NNL after just one season. They won promotion back to the NPFL on the penultimate day of the 2022 season. [13]

Achievements

1973, 1979
2022
1972, 1978, 1980, 2023
1994
1993, 1994, 1995

Performance in CAF competitions

1974: Second Round
1980: Semi-Finals
2005  – Second Round
1994 – Champion
1979  – Semi-Finals
1982 – Second Round

Management

Notable players

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References

  1. ↑ "Buhari Hails Obaseki's Investments in Sports, Revamp of Ogbemudia Stadium". ThisDay. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Obaseki parades new features of Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, assures more investment in sports". The Nigerian Observer. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Edo State To Rebrand Bendel Insurance Football Club • Channels Television". Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 9 January 2014.
  4. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ↑ "Bendel Insurance, three other teams promoted to Nigeria pro football league – Premium Times Nigeria". 9 January 2019. Archived from the original on 11 January 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
  6. ↑ "Nigeria's Edo State to pay women and men teams equally". 19 November 2019. Archived from the original on 20 November 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019– via www.bbc.co.uk.
  7. ↑ "Stadiums in Nigeria". World Stadiums. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2007.
  8. 1 2 Odegbami, Olusegun (18 January 2019). "The Return of 'Bede' Insurance!". Vanguard Nigeria. Archived from the original on 17 February 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
  9. ↑ "Insurance FC crisis started since 1995". NIGERIAN TRIBUNE. Archived from the original on 27 May 2008. Retrieved 4 January 2008.
  10. ↑ "Osunbor summons Ebewele, Ekhosuehi – Insurance crisis latest". NIGERIAN TRIBUNE. Retrieved 4 January 2008.[ permanent dead link ]
  11. ↑ "Compass News – Awaken To A Different World". Compass News – Awaken To A Different World. Archived from the original on 17 June 2009. Retrieved 7 March 2009.
  12. ↑ "Bendel Insurance F.C." Nigeria Professional Football League. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
  13. ↑ NNL: Bendel Insurance, Doma United FC Gain Promotion to NPFL
  14. ↑ Iyemefokhai, Enahoro (14 January 2025). "Okpebholo unveils new management teams, coaches for Bendel Insurance, Edo Queens". Daily Post Nigeria. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
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