PANASA Confirms Four Nigerians as Automatic Qualifiers for 2026 Africa Scrabble Championship
The Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA) has confirmed four Nigerians among the seven players awarded automatic qualification through its Wild Card system for the 2026 Africa Scrabble Championship.
Nigeria secured the highest number of Wild Card places with four, while Kenya claimed the remaining three automatic qualification slots.
Defending African Scrabble champion Oluwatimilehin Doko headlines Nigeria’s contingent after earning automatic qualification as the reigning continental champion.
He is joined by President’s Cup winner Cyril Umebiye, African Under-19 champion Prestige Archibong, and African Under-15 champion Sophia Ekeruche.
Kenya’s automatic qualifiers are President’s Cup champions Allan Oyende and Nicholas Mbugua, as well as Bernard Amuke, who received the ECASA 2026 Wild Card.
PANASA President Adekoyejo Adegbesan explained that Amuke was awarded the ECASA Wild Card after Oyende had already qualified automatically by virtue of winning the President’s Cup, making Amuke the next eligible player.
The continental body stated that, under its qualification policy, Wild Card slots are reserved for winners of PANASA-sanctioned tournaments, including recognised regional championships, held since the conclusion of the last Africa Scrabble Championship.
PANASA also clarified that the automatic qualification places will not reduce any country’s allocation for the championship. Each participating nation will still be entitled to register up to 15 home-based players and five diaspora players for the continental competition.
While the seven Wild Card recipients have secured their places at the championship, PANASA noted that they must still complete the official registration process within the stipulated deadline to validate their participation.
The association congratulated all the qualifiers and expressed optimism that the 16th Africa Scrabble Championship, scheduled to take place in Monrovia, Liberia, will showcase another exciting edition of Africa’s biggest Scrabble event.
