Incorporated in 1975 as South East Breweries Limited, it commenced operations in 1974 and changed its name to Cross River Breweries Limited. By 1987, the Akwa Ibom State Government became the sole owner of the company, and the company became a publicly traded company in 1992, changing its name to Champion Breweries Plc.
In 1999, SONA Group acquired a 57% stake in the company with Akwa Ibom State and the public holding 8.4% and 34.6% stake respectively. By 2010, Heineken NV bought SONA Group’s stake in the company, transferring the stake to Consolidated Breweries Plc. Consolidated Breweries transferred its equity to Rasu Nigeria Limited in 2013, increasing the stake to 60.7% while Asset Management had 12.3%, Akwa Ibom State 10%, and the public 17%.
Champion Breweries became fully independent from Consolidated Breweries Plc in 2014.
The brewery’s products include Champion Lager Beer and Champ malt, with both products having variants. Its major market is the southern part of Nigeria.
