Mikel backs calls for Ibrahim Gusau’s NFF board to step down

Former Super Eagles captain John Obi Mikel has joined calls for the Nigeria Football Federation board led by Ibrahim Gusau to resign, arguing that the country’s football administration needs a new direction. He linked his position to a series of poor outcomes involving Nigeria’s national teams.

Mikel said the Super Eagles’ failure to qualify for the last two FIFA World Cups was unacceptable for a country with Nigeria’s standing in African football. He warned that another failure must be avoided and said the federation should be run by people capable of developing the game.

The former Chelsea midfielder made the comments on the Joy Sports Podcast in Ghana, where he also expressed deep distrust of the current NFF leadership. He said he could not work with the federation because he regarded its officials as corrupt, adding to the pressure facing Gusau’s board.

The calls for change have grown after setbacks involving several national teams. Nigeria’s women’s side, the Super Falcons, recently missed qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup, despite being Africa’s most successful women’s team with 10 WAFCON titles.

That failure came after qualification disappointments involving the Super Eagles and the Flying Eagles in their respective World Cup campaigns. Other Nigerian national teams have also missed major international tournaments under the current federation leadership, giving the criticism a wider national-team focus.

Mikel’s intervention adds the voice of a former national captain to demands for a change in the way Nigerian football is managed. His position is that new leadership is required to restore competitiveness and prevent further missed opportunities on the international stage.