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Enugu Rangers, Seven Other Nigerian Teams Set for Viareggio Cup Kickoff in Italy

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Eight Nigerian clubs will begin their quest for glory at the prestigious youth football competition, the Viareggio Cup, which kicks off on Monday in Italy.

Youth players from Enugu Rangers will represent Nigeria in the opening fixture of the 76th edition of the tournament when they face ACF Fiorentina Under-18 side on Monday, March 9.

The encounter, scheduled for 2:30 pm local time, will take place in the Italian city of Viareggio and is expected to provide a tough early challenge for the young Nigerian side.

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The Viareggio Cup, which runs from March 9 to March 23, is regarded as one of the most respected youth tournaments in world football. It brings together leading academies and youth teams from across the globe and offers young players the opportunity to impress international scouts and club officials.

Nigeria will have a strong presence in this year’s competition, with eight teams participating. Five Nigerian sides will begin their campaigns on the opening day of the tournament.

Aside from Rangers’ clash with Fiorentina, One Touch Abuja will take on Viareggio Calcio. Nexus Football Academy will battle US Sassuolo, while RBM Sports face UYSS New York.

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In another opening-day fixture, Mavlon FC will square off against Genoa CFC.

The remaining Nigerian teams will start their matches on Tuesday, March 10. Magic Stars will face Spezia FC, while Ojodu City take on Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade.

Meanwhile, FuturePro Soccer will battle the Serie D Representative Team.

Nigeria’s large representation highlights the growing strength of the country’s youth football system. Many academies are now producing talented players who can compete with top youth teams from Europe and other parts of the world.

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Confidence among Nigerian teams is also boosted by history. In 2024, Beyond Limits Academy, affiliated with Remo Stars, made history by becoming the first African team to win the Viareggio Cup.

That achievement raised the profile of Nigerian youth football globally, and with eight teams involved in this year’s tournament, hopes are high that another strong performance could follow.

As the tournament begins in Viareggio, attention will be on the next generation of Nigerian football talents eager to shine on the international stage and possibly attract opportunities with top clubs around the world.

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“Give me a refund” — Fans furious after repeated rescheduling of ENHYPEN online fansign amid members’ poor health

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Fans of ENHYPEN have expressed frustration online after another schedule change affected the group’s video call fansign event. On March 8, the organizers of the event titled [VIDEO CALL EVENT 2] ENHYPEN ‘THE SIN: VANISH’ announced that the event would no longer take place on its previously scheduled date of March 10, 2026.

In an official notice shared online, the organizers says that the event has been postponed due to “unavoidable circumstances.” The video call event will now take place on April 2, 2026, at 8:30 p.m. KST, while the test call for participants has been scheduled for 7:00 p.m. KST on the same day.

In the notice, the organizers apologized to participants and fans who had been preparing for the event. They stated that the team would work to provide a “smoother and more stable service” and asked fans for their understanding regarding the change.

The announcement came shortly after another disruption related to ENHYPEN’s another online fansign events earlier in March. On March 2, a separate video call event involving ENHYPEN was canceled only two hours before its scheduled start time. At the time, the organizers explained that the postponement was due to the members’ poor health.

The second cancellation drew criticism from some fans, many of whom had already adjusted their schedules to participate in the event. Several participants also raised concerns about the lack of earlier notice. One fan wrote online,

“If you’re going to do that, you should give me a refund. What are you doing taking the money?”

One fan wrote (Image via TheQoo)One fan wrote (Image via TheQoo)
One fan wrote (Image via TheQoo)

Others also questioned the repeated schedule changes and expressed confusion about the newly announced date.

“Shouldn’t there be a clause that allows cancellation when changing the date of the call? It’s so arbitrary. What if I don’t receive the test call? What if someone else shows up during the call? Threats are rampant” said this fan.

“I don’t think there’s any need to badmouth the members. I’m just annoyed by companies that treat fans’ time and money as a joke” wrote this user.

“Is there a problem with Hello Live? Why does it keep doing that in the episodes they do?” asked another fan.

Some ENHYPEN fans said the situation suggested that there might be additional factors behind the postponements.

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“There must be something going on. There’s no communication ” said one netizen.

“It seems like there’s trouble with the record label, probably due to money ” read a comment,

“At this point, it seems like there really was a contract problem” wrote this user.

“It seems like there’s trouble with the record label, probably due to money” added this fan.


ENHYPEN’s THE SIN: VANISH surpasses 2 million first-week sales, continues steady run on Billboard charts

Meanwhile, ENHYPEN began 2026 with a strong commercial performance following the release of their seventh mini-album THE SIN: VANISH on January 16, 2026. The album recorded high sales both domestically and internationally soon after its release. Data from Hanteo Chart showed that THE SIN: VANISH sold 2,075,056 copies between January 16 and January 22, becoming the first album of 2026 to surpass two million copies within its first week.

On its release day alone, the album sold more than 1.6 million copies, becoming the highest first-day sales figure recorded by any album this year. THE SIN: VANISH is the group’s fourth album to exceed two million first-week sales and the third album to reach the milestone within a single week, following ROMANCE: UNTOLD and DESIRE: UNLEASH.

The album also continued to perform on international charts. According to the March 7 chart update published by Billboard on March 3, THE SIN: VANISH ranked No. 95 on the Billboard 200, the publication’s main album chart. The release remained on the chart for six consecutive weeks since debuting at No. 2 on the January 31 chart.

In addition, the album held No. 2 on the World Albums chart for three consecutive weeks and ranked No. 7 on the Top Album Sales chart. ENHYPEN as a group also appeared at No. 57 on the Artist 100 chart.

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Outside of music promotions, ENHYPEN continues to engage with fans through their self-produced variety show EN‑O’CLOCK. New episodes of the show is released every Thursday on the group’s official YouTube channel.