NFF given 24 hours to resign after Super Eagles, Falcons failures

The Ibrahim Musa Gusau-led Nigeria Football Federation board has been given 24 hours to resign after a series of setbacks involving the Super Eagles and Super Falcons. The demand follows Nigeria’s failure to reach the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the Falcons’ early exit from the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

Nigeria missed the men’s World Cup after finishing second in Group C with 17 points, one behind South Africa. The Super Eagles had dropped important points, including a 1-1 home draw with Zimbabwe in Uyo, before beating Gabon 4-1 after extra time in the African play-off semi-final. Their campaign ended against DR Congo, who won the final 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

The loss meant Nigeria missed a second consecutive World Cup. The NFF later challenged the eligibility of a DR Congo player with FIFA, but the complaint did not alter the outcome or Nigeria’s absence from the tournament.

The Super Falcons then lost their WAFCON title defence in Morocco. Cameroon defeated Nigeria 1-0 in the quarter-final in Casablanca on 9 August, with Myriam Maéva Nyadjou scoring in the 19th minute. The result sent Nigeria into a World Cup play-off, where South Africa won 2-1 and took the direct qualification place for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Nigeria will consequently miss the women’s World Cup for the first time since the competition began in 1991. The Falcons had entered the WAFCON as defending champions and had won the continental title 10 times. Head coach Justine Madugu and his assistants were dismissed after the tournament, while the NFF apologised to President Bola Tinubu and Nigerians before appointing a fact-finding committee led by former general secretary Fanny Amun.

The pressure also extends to the youth teams. Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2025 U17 Africa Cup of Nations after a 2-0 defeat by Ghana in the WAFU B semi-final, missing the 2026 FIFA U17 World Cup as a result. It was the second successive U17 AFCON absence for the five-time world champions. The federation is led by Gusau, with Felix Anyansi-Agwu as vice-president and Mohammed Sanusi as general secretary.