This year’s Play with Stephen golf tournament pulled in a sponsor list long enough to fill a leaderboard on its own, and each one supported the tournament and its cause in its own way.

From August 21st to 23rd, 2026, Lakowe Lakes & Country Estate in Lagos hosted the 7th edition of Swing for Autism, the charity tournament founded by Stephen Onaivi in 2020. What started as one man’s belief that golf could open doors for autism advocacy has grown into a weekend that brings together telecom companies, beverage brands, hospitality partners and media houses in support of the same cause.

Beyond the golf and the glitz, Play With Stephen exists to close a gap that Africa’s systems have long struggled to address: access to autism diagnosis, therapy and education. Each edition of the tournament channels its proceeds directly to beneficiary centres doing that work on the ground,  turning a weekend of golf into sustained support for families who often navigate an autism diagnosis with little guidance. Since its founding in 2020, the initiative has grown from a single tournament into a platform, one that uses sport to hold a conversation Africa hasn’t always been ready to have, and to make sure that conversation doesn’t end when the last putt drops.

The sponsors included Olston Foundation, EBA, Simply black, Golf Gamebook, Devtraco, Guinness, Lakowe Lakes, Wheatbaker, Mixtah Africa, The Singleton, Pepsi, Aquafina, Fortress Capital, Spur, and Indomie.

GHM Luxury, MTN, Rewindfm Lagos and Devtraco were also part of the event, taking the tournament’s story beyond the golf course. Gamebook also supported the tournament’s scoring and results.

Olston Foundation and EBA stepped in as the curators and powerhouses of this historic event, taking on the planning and delivery of the tournament, supporting the work behind the event as well as its execution.

The support from these sponsors helped make the tournament possible and gave more people an opportunity to be part of a cause that does not always receive the attention it deserves. It also helped bring golfers, advocates, volunteers, families and organisations connected to autism advocacy together over the three-day event.

About Play with Stephen

Play with Stephen is a sports initiative, founded in 2020 by Stephen Onaivi to raise awareness and funding for autism care across Africa through the game of golf. Held under the banner “Swing for Autism,” the tournament brings together golfers, corporate partners and advocates each year in support of autism centres and the families they serve.

Proceeds from Play with Stephen go directly to beneficiary centres providing diagnosis, therapy and education for autistic individuals.