Safety Shooters and Safety Babes, both owned by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), will begin the defence of their respective titles when the 2026 Ardova Handball Premier League serves off in Lagos on Saturday, November 7.

Safety Shooters will be aiming to retain their men’s crown, while Safety Babes will seek to extend their remarkable dominance in the women’s category after claiming an unprecedented fifth consecutive league title last season.

The Abuja-based Safety Babes have now won six league titles since the competition was introduced in 2018.

According to the fixtures released by the Handball Federation of Nigeria (HFN), Safety Shooters will open their title defence against newly promoted U & H Abia at the NIS Indoor Sports Hall, Surulere, on the opening day.

Safety Babes will also begin their campaign at the same venue, where they will face debutants Funad Academy in their first match of the competition.

In the men’s category, the opening-day fixtures will also feature COAS Shooters against Kano Pillars, Benue Buffaloes versus Niger United and Osun United taking on Correction Boys.

De Defenders will lock horns with 2024 champions Tojemarine Academy, while newcomers NAF Rockets will test their strength against Rima Strikers of Sokoto.

The women’s competition will feature four other Matchday 1 fixtures, with 2018 champions Plateau Peacocks facing Defender Babes, Rima Queens taking on Rivers Queens and Imo Grasshoppers meeting SOOF.

Ekiti Queens will also battle Omo Ogiefo Academy as the teams begin their campaigns for the 2026 title.

The 2026 edition will feature 12 teams in the men’s category and 10 in the women’s competition, with matches scheduled to take place at the NIS Indoor Sports Hall, Surulere, and Rowe Park Sports Complex, Yaba, from November 7 to 21.

The preliminary round will run until November 17, after which the top eight teams in each category will progress to the quarter-finals scheduled for November 19.

The semi-final matches will be played on November 20, while the third-place fixtures and finals are slated for November 21, when the champions in both categories will be decided.

With the fixtures now released, attention will turn to Lagos as the defending champions and their challengers prepare for three weeks of competition in the race for the 2026 Ardova Handball Premier League honours.

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