After 43 years, Bendel Insurance have emerged champions of the 2022-2023 Nigerian Federation Cup, also known as the Nigerian FA Cup.
The victory was thanks to a slim 1-0 win over Enugu Rangers at the Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, Delta state on June 21, 2023.
Bendel Insurance started the season on a very high note and finished the 2022/23 abridged Nigeria Premier League season with a 21-match unbeaten run but fell off at the Championship Super 6 playoffs, where the Benin Arsenal finished fifth with two defeats and three draws.
But Insurance’s ultimate hopes of finishing the season with silverware and the coveted opportunity to play in the continent next season lies in the 2022-2023 Nigerian Federation Cup final and eventually did everything right in Asaba as Imade Osarenkhoe’s first half goal from a spot kick sealed the victory for the Edo state-owned club.
It was Bendel Insurance’s fourth Federation Cup title in the club’s history and their first since 1980. For winning the title, Insurance will receive the cash prize of 15 million Naira and clinch the ticket as Nigeria’s second representative in next season’s CAF Confederation Cup alongside Rivers United.
Their previous three Federation Cup titles were won in 1972, 1978 and 1980.
