Rivers United FC has remained in the top flight since its first season. In the 2020-2021 CAF Confederation Cup season, Rivers defeated South African opponent Bloemfontein Celtic home and away to set up a highly anticipated matchup against neighbors Enyimba in the final qualifying round for a spot in the group stage. They lost the tie on penalties after a 1–1 aggregate scoreline[5]
History
Rivers United was founded in 2016 after the Rivers state government got permission to merge Dolphins FC and Sharks FC. Both clubs were run by the state government and were experiencing financial difficulty.[6] Sharks were relegated to the First Division in 2015 while Dolphins had barely escaped relegation after drawing their final match.[7] Rivers United' crest contains both a shark and a dolphin as a result of the merge.[8]
Stanley Eguma was appointed coach and led them to a win in their first league match, 1–0 over Enyimba.[9]
The club finished second in the 2016 Nigerian Premier League which qualified them for the 2017 CAF Champions League for the first time.[10] A four-goal second-leg win over Mali's AS Bamako with Esosa Igbinoba and Bernard Ovoke each scoring braces put Rivers past the preliminary round.[11] However, they were eliminated by Sudan's Al-Merrikh 4–3 on aggregate in the first round after losing a 3–0 first round lead.[12]
Rivers United ended the season with 77 points, breaking the league record of 73 points in a season.[14][15]
The 2021–22 Nigeria Professional Football League title is their first league title since the merger between Dolphins and Sharks FC of Port Harcourt in 2016.[16] It is also the first NPFL title by a Rivers-based side since the Dolphins won in 2011.[17][18]
Rivers United won 23 games, drew 8, and lost 7 of their 38 league games as they claimed the 2021-22 league title with 10 points ahead of their closest rivals, Plateau United.[19][20][21]
Rivers united players and officials were awarded $20,000 each by the Rivers state government for their league triumph in 2022 and were promised another $40,000USD if they qualify for the 2022-2023 Caf champions league group stage. [22][23]
2022-23: Season
This season saw Rivers United ready to defend their title, with the league slightly delayed and later reformated into an abridged league season, Rivers United were drafted in Group B with the likes of Lobi Stars,Sunshine stars and co. They topped the group with 34pts and qualify for the Super 6 where they finished 3rd behind Remo Stars F.C. and Enyimba. in the Continent they got to the quarter final of the Caf Confederation cup, finishing runners up to ASEC Mimosas in a group that has Diables Noirs and DC Motema Pembe . they were knocked out of the quarter finals by Tanzanian giants Young Africans .
2023-24 Current season
The New season saw a change of fortune for Rivers United as they were through to the quarter final of the CAF confederation cup for the second time running, and still maintaining a good position in the league table despite some reschedule fixtures. they qualified to quarter final of the CAF confederation cup with a last minute win over Dreams F.C. of Ghana. in the CAF confederations Cup quarter final they were drawn against Algerian giants USM Alger on the 12 of March 2024. The first leg of the Continental Affair saw Rivers triumph over Reigning champions USM Alger with a solitary goal from Augustin Okejepha. with the second leg expected to be played on the 7th of April 2024.
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