Foremost African Financial Institution, Guaranty Trust Bank plc, has announced the commencement of the 2017 edition of the GTBank – Ogun State Principals’ Cup Season 5 at a press conference held on Thursday, March 2, 2017, at the Cinema Hall, June 12 Cultural Center, Kuto, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

GTBank has been at the forefront of promoting grassroots football in Nigeria,and in 2012 the Bank created the GTBankOgun State Principals Cup competition, a version of which it has sponsored in Lagos State since 2009. Now among the largest and most widely followed grassroots soccer competitions in Africa, the tournamentsare aimed at actively engaging secondary school students through sports whilst promoting the values of excellence and fair play. They also provide a platform for identifying, nurturing and grooming young and talented players and helping them on the journey towards actualizing their dreams of becoming world class footballers.

Season 4 of the GTBank Ogun State Principals Cup competition had more than 300 participating teams in the male and female categories, all drawn from schools across the four educational districts in Ogun State – Egba, Ijebu, Remo and Yewa. In the boys’ category, Alamuwa Grammar School, Ado Odo emerged champions after defeating Methodist Comprehensive College, Sagamu 2-1 in the finals, while Muslim High School, Isolu clinched the title in the girls’ category with a 3-2 victory over Iganmode Grammar School, Ota. Season 5 of the tournament will feature about 350 teams in the male and female categories with the eventual Winner, 1^st , 2^ndand 3^rdRunners Up takinghome the total sum of N5 million.

Over the years, the GTBank Ogun State Principals Cup has launched the professional careers of several talented and renowned players like OpeyemiQudus, Owode Secondary School, Owode; Akin Ayinde, Ilugun High School, Orile-Ilegun; and Ibrahim Deinde, Akesan High School, Sagamu who played in the 2014 and 2015 editions of the tournament, andwere selected to join theNigerian U-15 Team.

Commenting on the tournament, the Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank plc, stated that “The GTBank Ogun State Principals Cup is part of the Bank’s efforts to identify, nurture and groom young and talented players as they work towards their dream of being world class footballers whilst fostering and building a healthier lifestyle at a critical stage in their lives.” He further stated that “As we commence the5^th season of this annual grassroots football competition, we remain committed to investing massively in the development of young people through education and sports.

Guaranty Trust Bank, a youth oriented brand, maintains the lead in providing support for education and sports to enable young boys and girls explore their talents and reach for their dreams. It is one of the few Nigerian financial institutions that have maintained a defined Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy, most especially in sports education. The Bank actively supports in-classroom and out-of-classroom educational programmes, infrastructure development, students’ scholarship and teachers training across Africa.