No fewer than 300 elite Scrabble players from Nigeria and across the West African sub-region will converge on Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, to battle for a record N20 million prize purse at the sixth edition of the Governor Douye Diri National Scrabble Classic.
The championship, sanctioned by the World English Scrabble Players Association (WESPA) and the Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA), will hold on August 1 and 2, cementing its status as the biggest tournament on the Nigeria Scrabble Federation (NSF) calendar.
Competition will begin at the Matho Crystal Hotel, Imiringi Road, Yenagoa, before the grand finale and prize presentation at the DSP Alamieyeseigha Memorial Banquet Hall, Government House, Yenagoa.
Governor Douye Diri is expected to attend the closing ceremony as Special Guest of Honour alongside members of the Bayelsa State Executive Council.
Chairman of the Bayelsa State Scrabble Association, Daniel Alabrah, said Governor Diri approved an increase in the tournament’s total prize money to about N20 million after the successful staging of last year’s competition.
He disclosed that the winner of the prestigious Master’s category will smile home with N2 million, double the N1 million awarded in the 2025 edition.
Alabrah credited the governor’s sustained sponsorship of the competition over the past five years with driving the growth of scrabble in Bayelsa and attracting more young Nigerians to the intellectual sport.
He also hailed Diri for extending government support beyond conventional sports such as football, wrestling, boxing and swimming.
President of the Nigeria Scrabble Federation, Bright Idahosa, described the Governor Diri Classic as the country’s most coveted scrabble championship, saying it has become the tournament every top player looks forward to.
“As a federation, we appreciate His Excellency Governor Douye Diri for hosting this tournament annually. It is the biggest championship in our calendar and every top player in our country wants to be a part of it,” Idahosa said.
He added that Bayelsa’s peaceful atmosphere and hospitality have continued to attract competitors from across Nigeria and beyond.
“Besides, another attraction is the peace of Bayelsa and the hospitality of the people. For many of us, Bayelsa has become a second home”, he added.
The sixth Governor Douye Diri National Scrabble Classic is expected to feature some of Africa’s highest-rated players competing for honours and one of the richest prize pools in the continent’s scrabble circuit.
