On 25 May 2026, Nigerian outlets reported that HJK Helsinki had signed David Temidayo Olorunfemi, a 19-year-old striker, from Tripple 44 Football Academy in Ibadan. It was the latest move out of an Oyo State youth club that has become the most visible football academy in Ibadan, and it comes while the city's NPFL side, Shooting Stars Sports Club, is still working out how to run its own academy.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Best documented academy | Tripple 44 Football Academy, Ibadan |
| Founder and sporting director | Samuel Olatunji Okuku |
| Affiliation | Nigeria Football Federation, through the Oyo State Football Association, since 2017 |
| Latest sale abroad | David Temidayo Olorunfemi to HJK Helsinki, May 2026 |
| Club with an academy side | Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC), Lekan Salami Stadium |
| Published fees | None found for any Ibadan academy |
| Scouting event in 2026 | X-TOUCH Next-Gen Football Star Quest, Barracks Stadium, 7 to 9 January |
Tripple 44 Football Academy
Okuku started the project in 2014 with four players. It was registered with the Nigeria Football Federation through the Oyo State Football Association in 2017. The academy describes itself as a place that prepares young Nigerians for European careers while they stay in school.
Its record is why parents ask. Ibrahim Adewale is the template. A forward born in September 2006, he was scouted in Abuja and spent about seven years there. He joined IF Karlstad on loan in March 2025. Mjällby AIF of the Swedish Allsvenskan then bought him outright. Mjällby's sporting director Hasse Larsson confirmed on 29 October 2025 that talks with the academy were under way, saying the clubs were a little way apart, and the deal was agreed on 2 November. Adewale joined in January 2026 on a contract that runs to 2030.
Others followed. Ozor Okeke went to IF Elfsborg, Peter Olawale reached Hapoel Ra'anana in 2020 and later Debreceni VSC in Hungary, and Prince Amos signed for Vasalund IF. When Olorunfemi left, Okuku called it another proud moment for the academy, and The Sun reported neither a fee nor a contract length.
That silence is typical. Fees stay private.
No transfer fee has been published for any of these moves. We found no public fee schedule, boarding price or registration charge for Tripple 44 either. Ask. In writing.
Shooting Stars and the question of its academy
Shooting Stars, known as 3SC and nicknamed the Oluyole Warriors, play at Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan. They finished third in the 2025/26 Nigeria Premier Football League with 60 points, behind Enugu Rangers and Rivers United. Our guide to the NPFL clubs and stadiums covers the ground and the league.
The club does run an academy side. We know this from an awkward episode: in August 2026 the NPFL disqualified 3SC from the preseason Super 6 tournament because the squad list handed in listed academy players alongside the first team, which broke the competition's eligibility rules. Katsina United replaced them. That is all the report says. Africa Top Sports reported the story on 19 August, with no statement from the club.
We could not find a published description of the centre itself. Age groups, pitches, intake and cost are all unknown. The club office is the only reliable route, and until it publishes those details, any figure quoted by a middleman should be treated as unverified.
Other names and what we could not confirm
Activity is not the same as a registered academy.
A scouting event does not make an academy, but it shows who is active. Adeyemi FC ran the ground work for the X-TOUCH Next-Gen Football Star Quest at Barracks Stadium in Ibadan, from 7 to 9 January 2026. It was aimed at players aged 16 to 19. Its founder, the agent OlaOlu Adedayo, said: “This is about discovering the next football star.” The report mentioned no entry fee.
Midtown International Football Academy and Madestone Football Academy turn up in online searches around Ibadan, mostly through social media pages. We found no dated 2025 or 2026 source tying either one to the city or showing it is active, so we are not listing them as verified. The same goes for small academies advertised on WhatsApp.
How parents avoid being scammed
Fraud here is not abstract.
In May 2026 the Iyaganku Chief Magistrates' Court in Ibadan heard a four-count charge against Patrick Omojuwon, a 30-year-old travel agent, who is accused of taking N24.8 million to secure a place for a boy at a football academy in Sweden and then failing to process it. He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail of N10 million. The case was adjourned to 20 October, and we have not found a ruling.
Rule one. Never pay into a personal or unrelated company account, always insist on a written receipt naming the academy, and check the academy's registration with the Oyo State Football Association. Ask which European clubs have actually signed its players, then look for the club's own announcement, as Mjällby and HJK made for Adewale and Olorunfemi.
Walk away from anyone who guarantees a trial abroad for a fixed sum. No honest scout can.
What it means for Nigerian football
Ibadan is no longer a footnote.
Ibadan produced Olorunfemi and Adewale outside the Lagos and Abuja pipeline. The buyers were in Sweden and Finland, not England. If you are comparing cities, our guides to a football academy in Abuja, a football academy in Port Harcourt and a football academy in Lagos give the same level of detail.
This article was most recently revised and updated 20 seconds ago
