Tinubu Redeems D’Tigress $100,000 Cash Reward, Completes Presidential Package

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has announced the full redemption of the presidential reward package promised to Nigeria’s senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, following their historic victory at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket Championship.

Each D’Tigress player has now received the naira equivalent of $100,000, while members of the team’s technical and official crew have received the equivalent of $50,000 each, completing the cash component of the reward.

The National Sports Commission (NSC) confirmed that the payments were credited to the players’ and officials’ bank accounts on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, with recipients confirming receipt.

The development completes the presidential reward package, which also included three-bedroom apartments in Abuja and the national honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) for the players and officials.

The NSC had previously presented the beneficiaries with title documents for their Abuja apartments and certificates of national honours during a ceremony in Lyon, France, in February 2026.

Reacting to the completion of the payments, President Tinubu said his administration had fulfilled its commitment to the basketball team after following the legal and administrative procedures required to implement the rewards.

“Today, the rewards I promised our D’Tigress have been fully redeemed,” the President said.

He said the process had taken time because the government had to follow the necessary procedures and ensure that each commitment was properly implemented.

“That took time, but a promise made must be a promise kept,” Tinubu said.

The President described the development as the first time, under a Federal Government, that presidential sporting rewards of such scale had been fully implemented within one year.

Tinubu also disclosed that the Federal Government is working to conclude the outstanding cash component of the presidential rewards promised to the Super Falcons.

The Super Falcons had earlier received title documents for their three-bedroom house allocations and certificates for their national honours following their success at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

The President said the government had similarly fulfilled the housing and national honours commitments made to members of the Super Eagles.

The Super Falcons were rewarded after winning the WAFCON title in Morocco, while the Super Eagles had previously received housing and national honour commitments from the Federal Government.

D’Tigress earned the presidential reward after defeating Mali 78–64 in the final of the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

The victory secured Nigeria’s fifth consecutive AfroBasket title and seventh overall, further extending the team’s dominance of women’s basketball on the continent.

The Federal Government announced the reward package in August 2025, including $100,000 for each player, $50,000 for members of the technical crew, national honours and three-bedroom accommodation in Abuja.

The housing and national honours components were formally delivered earlier this year, leaving the cash payments as the final outstanding element of the D’Tigress package.

Tinubu said Nigerian athletes who achieve international success should receive tangible recognition from the country they represent.

“Our athletes who bring honour to Nigeria deserve more than applause. They deserve a country that keeps its word,” he said.

The President congratulated the D’Tigress players and officials once again, adding that his message to Nigerian athletes was to make the country proud and return home to a grateful nation.

The completion of the D’Tigress reward package comes as Nigeria continues efforts to strengthen incentives for athletes following major international victories.