Nigeria national football team

After playing other colonies in unofficial games since the 1930s, Nigeria played its first official game in October 1949, while still a British colony. The team played warm-up games in England against various amateur teams including Bromley, Dulwich Hamlet, Bishop Auckland, and South Liverpool. Nigeria's match against Marine A.F.C. at Rossett Park drew 6,000 spectators, a record for the small ground.

1963–1980

Nigeria first appeared in the Africa Cup of Nations in 1963, when they were drawn in a group with Sudan, and the then United Arab Republic. They did not advance to the next stage.

The team's first major success was a gold medal in the 2nd All-Africa games in 1973 led by captain, Victor Oduah. The team went on to achieve 3rd-place finishes in the 1976 and 1978 African Cup of Nations to follow. In 1980, with players such as Segun Odegbami and Best Ogedegbe, the team, led by Christian Chukwu, won the African Cup for the first time in Lagos. Nigeria Olympic men's football team won the football event at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, beating Mexico, Brazil and Argentina in the process. They were runners-up in the same event at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, losing to Argentina in a rematch of the 1996 Final of the event.^[3][4]

In 1984, 1988 and 2000,^[5] Nigeria reached the Cup of Nations final, losing to Cameroon. Three of the five African titles won by Cameroon have been won by defeating Nigeria. Missing out to Cameroon on many occasions has created an intense rivalry between both nations. Three notable occasions; narrowly losing out in the 1988 African Cup of Nations, qualifiers for the 1990 World Cup, and the controversial final of the 2000 African Cup of Nations where a kick taken by Victor Ikpeba during the penalty shoot-out was adjudged not to have crossed the goal-line by the referee.^[6]

The team withdrew from two African Cup of Nations between 1963 and 1974, due to political instability and in 1996. In 1976, they came back to the Cup of Nations with third-place finishes in both the 1976 and 1978 Africa Cup of Nations.

1980–1990

Nigeria hosted the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations and also won their first Cup of Nations Title that year in Lagos. Ghana came out as runners-up three times and had one group stage elimination, between 1982 and 1990. They also failed to qualify for the 1986 Africa Cup of Nations hosted by Egypt.

1992–2006

Nigeria appeared again in the African Cup of Nations in 1992 and 1994, they finished third in 1992 and won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations, which was the second time they won the tournament.

Nigeria finally reached the World Cup for the first time in 1994 after years of struggling to get there. They were managed by Clemens Westerhof. Nigeria topped their group which included Argentina, Bulgaria, and Greece. Nigeria defeated Bulgaria 3–0, lost to Argentina 1–2, and reached the second round after a 2–0 victory over Greece. In the second round, Nigeria played Italy and took the lead with a goal from Emmanuel Amunike at 25 minutes. Nigeria was within two minutes of qualifying for the Quarter-finals, but Roberto Baggio scored to take the game to extra time. He also scored the eventual winning goal. The game ended 2–1 in favour of the Italians. In 1996 the team withdrew from that year's African Cup of Nations under pressure from the country's military dictator Sani Abacha due to the criticism received from the tournament hosts South Africa and especially its president Nelson Mandela, for the execution of Ogoni activist Ken Saro-Wiwa. Nigeria was subsequently banned from entering the 1998 African Cup of Nations.

In 1998, Nigeria returned to the World Cup alongside Cameroon, Morocco, Tunisia, and South Africa. Optimism was high due to its manager Bora Milutinović and the return of most 1994 squad members. In the final tournament Nigeria were drawn into group D with Spain, Bulgaria, Paraguay. Nigeria scored a major upset by defeating Spain 3–2 after coming back twice from being 1–0 and 2–1 down. The Eagles qualified for the second round with a win against Bulgaria and a loss to Paraguay. The team's hopes of surpassing its 1994 performance were shattered after a 1–4 loss to Denmark. This is currently the only World Cup that Nigeria qualified for without playing Argentina in the tournament finals.

In 2000 they returned to the Cup of Nations and were the runner-up and subsequently finished in third place at the 2002, 2004 and 2006 Africa Cup of Nations.

2002 and 2006 World Cups

The 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan saw Nigeria again qualify with optimism. With a new squad and distinctive pastel green kits, the Super Eagles were expected to build on its strong performances in the 2000 and 2002 African Cup of Nations. Nigeria was drawn into group F with powerhouses Sweden, Argentina, and England. The first game against Argentina started with a strong defence that kept the first half scoreless. In the 61st minute, Gabriel Batistuta breached the Nigerian defence to put Argentina in the lead 1–0, and Argentina would go on to win the game. Nigeria's second game against Sweden saw them take the lead but later lose 2–1. Nigeria then drew 0–0 with England and bowed out in the first round.

Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2006 World Cup after finishing level on points in the qualification group with Angola, but having an inferior record in the matches between the sides.^[7]

2008–2017

In the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria ended their campaign in the quarter finals after losing to Ghana. They qualified for 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, hosted by Angola, but were eliminated by Ghana in the semi-finals. They failed to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations after ending the qualifiers with a 2–2 draw against Guinea with goals from Ikechukwu Uche and Victor Obinna.

Nigeria came back in the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations hosted in South Africa; after playing through the tournament with an unbeaten run, they defeated Burkina Faso in the finals to lift the Cup for the third time. However, they did not qualify for either of the next two tournaments.^[8]

2010 World Cup

On 14 November 2009, Nigeria qualified for the 2010 World Cup after defeating Kenya by 3–2 in Nairobi.^[9]

Nigeria lost its opening match against Argentina 1–0 at Ellis Park Stadium following a controversial Gabriel Heinze header in the 6th minute.^[10][11] In its second game Nigeria led early on by a goal from Kalu Uche. A red card against Sani Kaita gave Greece the advantage. Greece scored the equaliser late in the first half and Nigeria conceded the second goal in the second half and lost the game 2–1. In their last group stage match against South Korea, Nigeria took an early lead in the 12th minute off of a great finish by Kalu Uche after a low cross from Chidi Odiah.However, goals from Lee Jung-Soo and Park Chu-Young gave South Korea a 2–1 lead, which looked to be enough for South Korea to advance into the round of 16. However, Nigeria got a chance in the 66th minute, on the end of a pass from Ayila Yussuf that was fed through the South Korean defense was none other than Yakubu, once the pass found Yakubu's foot about four yards away from the empty goal, Yakubu pushed the ball wide of the left post to leave South Korea still ahead 2–1. Three minutes later, Yakubu was able to calmly finish a penalty to knot the score at two apiece, but Nigeria was unable to score again and the match ended in a 2–2 draw.With this result, Nigeria was eliminated from the 2010 World Cup with just one point, while South Korea advanced into the round of 16 with four points. On 30 June 2010, following the team's early exit and poor showing, the then President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan suspended the national football team from international competition for two years.^[12] This suspension put the team at risk of being banned from international football by FIFA for reasons of political interference.^[13]

On 5 July 2010, the Nigerian government rescinded its ban of the national football team from FIFA/CAF football competitions,^[14] but the sanction of suspension was applied by FIFA some three months after.^[15] On 4 October 2010, Nigeria was indefinitely banned from international football due to government interference following the 2010 World Cup.^[15] Four days later, however, the ban was "provisionally lifted" until 26 October, the day after the officially unrecognised players' union – National Association of Nigerian Footballers (NANF) dropped its court case against the NFF.^[16]

2014 World Cup

Nigeria's campaign in the 2014 FIFA World Cup opened with a disappointing 0–0 draw against Iran. Four days later the team played their second game against Bosnia and Herzegovina. A controversial 29th-minute Peter Odemwingie goal gave Nigeria their first World Cup match win since 1998. They faced Argentina another four days later: a 3rd minute Lionel Messi goal for the opposition was followed almost instantly with an equalizer by Ahmed Musa. Messi gave Argentina the lead back just before half-time. In the second half, Musa leveled the game out again, Lionel Messi was substituted and handed over his captaincy to Marcos Rojo only for Rojo to put Argentina 3–2 ahead minutes later.

Nigeria lost the match, but still qualified for the round of 16.In the Round of 16, Nigeria faced France, an 18th-minute stabbed shot from Emmanuel Emenike saw the ball in the net, past the French goal-keeper but the goal was ruled off-side by the linesman. Nigeria held them off until the 79th minute when a cross and a Paul Pogba header gifted France the lead. An accidental own goal by Super Eagles Captain Joseph Yobo in injury time put the result beyond any doubt: Nigeria was out. This is the third time Nigeria is eliminated in the round of 16 and they were not still able to enter the Quarter-finals in the FIFA World Cup.

2018 World Cup

On 24 June 2016, The Confederation of African Football released the draw for the 3rd round of the World Cup qualifiers which saw Nigeria grouped in what was described as a "group of death"; alongside Zambia, Algeria, and Cameroon. Nigeria started their group stage matches with a 2–1 win over Zambia in Ndola^[17] and defeated Algeria 3–1 in their second match at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium.^[18] They went on to beat Cameroon 5–1 home and away in a back to back contest.^[19]

The Super Eagles of Nigeria became the first African team to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup after beating Zambia 1–0 in Uyo.^[20][21][22] On 3 June 2018, coach Gernot Rohr unveiled a 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.^[23] Nigeria lost their first match of the tournament 0–2 to Croatia in Kaliningrad,^[24] before they won 2–0 in the second match against a brave Iceland,^[25] with Ahmed Musa scoring both goals.^[26] Nigeria had a huge chance to qualify to the next round as Argentina was demolished 3–0 by Croatia. Despite this advantage, they lost 2–1 in their last group stage match against Argentina,^[27] with one goal by Victor Moses.^[28] For this defeat, and followed with Iceland's defeat to Croatia, Nigeria missed the opportunity to advance to the round of 16 and got eliminated from the tournament.^[29]

2019 Africa Cup of Nations

The Super Eagles started their campaign at the 2019 AFCON by defeating Burundi 1–0 in group B opening match. They went on to defeat Guinea and lost 2–0 to Madagascar in their final group stage match. The round of 16 saw the national football team of Nigeria defeating Cameroon 3–2 with goals coming from Jude Ighalo and Iwobi, they later went on to confront South Africa in the quarter-finals of the tournament. An 89th-minute header from Troost-Ekong gave Nigeria the lead over South Africa and the match ended 2–1 in favour of Nigeria. Nigeria faced Algeria in the semi-finals and were knocked out of the tournament after a 95th-minute free kick from Riyad Mahrez gave Algeria the lead. The Super Eagles later faced Tunisia in a third place match which they won 1–0 with the only goal coming from Ighalo which made him the top scorer of the tournament.

2021 Africa Cup of Nations

On 18 July 2019, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) released the draw for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification. The Super Eagles were grouped in group L alongside Lesotho, Benin, and Sierra Leone. Nigeria started out by defeating Benin 2–1 at Uyo in their first group match and later went on to beat Lesotho 4–2 in an away match. In March 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the CAF postponed all AFCON qualifiers indefinitely.^[30] Subsequently, on 30 June 2020, CAF rescheduled the 2021 African Cup of Nations to 2022, to take place from 9 January to 6 February 2022.^[31] The qualifiers resumed on 9 November 2020.^[32][33]

The 2021 AFCON started on 9 January 2022, and Nigeria was the only team in the tournament to win all three group stage matches after defeating Egypt 1–0, Sudan 3–1, and Guinea-Bissau 2–0.^[34] However, Nigeria lost 1–0 in the round of 16 to Tunisia on 23 January.^[35]

2022 World Cup

Nigeria failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 16 years, losing to Ghana on the away goals rule after drawing 0–0 in Ghana and 1–1 in Nigeria.^[36][37]

2023 Africa Cup of Nations

The Super Eagles started their campaign at the 2023 AFCON by drawing 1–1 to Equatorial Guinea in their opening group A match. They went on to defeat hosts Ivory Coast 1–0 and defeated Guinea Bissau in the same scoreline. The round of 16 saw the national football team of Nigeria defeating Cameroon 2–0 with a brace from Ademola Lookman, they later went on to defeat Angola in the quarter-finals of the tournament thanks to a first half strike from Lookman. Nigeria faced South Africa in the semi-finals. Substitute Kelechi Iheanacho scored to give Nigeria a 4–2 penalty shootout victory over South Africa. The match finished 1–1 after extra time. In the final, Super Eagles finished as runners-up, losing 2–1 to hosts Ivory Coast.^[38]

Kits and crest

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nigeria national football team kits.

The Nigeria national team has traditionally used a mostly-solid green on green primary set with white numbering, lettering, and highlights; coupled with all-white reversed secondary kits, all emblematic of the colours of the Nigerian flag. The shade of green has varied over the years. An olive drab-tinged, forest green was frequently favoured during the 1980s to the early 1990s, and jade has appeared in each of those decades as well; even harlequin has been used. Over the last decade, the team has appeared to settle on the more standard office green which most closely resembles the shade used on the flag. Nigeria's first national teams used a solid scarlet top over white shorts and socks until the country adopted its current colours after its independence.^[39]

On 23 April 2015, Nike was announced to be the supplier of Nigeria's kits after Adidas ended their kit contract with the NFF.^[40][41] Before that, Nike supplied Nigeria's kit between 1998 and 2003.^[42]

Kit suppliers

Kit supplier	Period	Notes
Erima	1980–1984[43]
Admiral	1984–1987[43]
Adidas	1988–1994[43]
Nike	1994–2003[42]
Adidas	2004–2014[44]
Nike	2015–present[45]

Kit deals

Kit supplier	Period	Contract announcement	Contract duration	Value	Notes
Nike	2015–present	2015-04-23	1 May 2015 – 30 October 2018 (3 years & 6 months)[46]	Total $3.75m / 743m Naira[47]
		2018-11-20	1 November 2018 – December 2026 (8 years)	Undisclosed[48]	The new deal is said to be worth significantly more than the $3.75 million on the previous deal.

Nigeria's national team image has undergone much evolution throughout its history. Prior to independence, they were called the Red Devils due to their red topped kits.^[49] The name was changed to the Green Eagles after independence in reference to the Nigerian state flag as well as the eagle which adorns the country's coat of arms. There had been deliberations for a while heading to the 1988 Africa Cup of Nations, where they were still called the Green Eagles, but at a reception after the tournament, the team's name was officially changed to the "Super Eagles".^[50][51] Today, only the senior men's national team uses the nickname. The women's national team is called the "Super Falcons", and Nigeria's underage male teams are nicknamed the "Flying Eagles" & the "Golden Eaglets".

Media coverage

The Nigerian football federation currently has an active deal with the parent company of AIT and Ray Power Radio.^[52] Internationally, Nigeria's qualifiers and African Cup matches are regularly broadcast abroad by the multi-platform international sports network, beIN Sports and South African broadcaster SuperSport.^[53] Nigeria's international friendlies are regularly scheduled in the UK through independent organisers are marketed to the country's large population of Nigerian expatriates.

Supporters

Though the club is most notable at Nigeria's home matches wearing green-themed embroidered outfits specific to the club along with wigs, hats and large sunglasses while dancing, singing, playing drums and trumpets, as well as carrying pom poms, culturally significant objects, inflatable beachballs, and waving flags; they have also shown a presence travelling abroad to support Nigeria in away matches.^[54][55] However, the club's efforts at improving the atmosphere at Nigeria's home and away matches are beset by funding issues, corruption and infighting.^[56] The club's current head, Rafiu Ladipo, has drawn criticism from its membership and is under pressure to defer the leadership to one of his deputies.^[57]

A regular sight at Nigerian home matches is also their brass and percussion band, whose rendition of well-known Highlife songs provides Nigerian home matches with a unique feel. In Nigeria, these performers are occasionally conspicuous with their military uniforms or they may be members of the Football Supporters Club.^[58] A popular chant among supporters from all over the country, after a goal scored, is "Oshe Baba!", which means "Thank you father!" in Yoruba.

Ghana

Many important matches have been played against various nations who have been occasional rivals. Of these nations, Ghana is widely considered Nigeria's primary rival as the two sides have met one another more than any other opponent, as well as being two of the most successful national teams in Africa. Nigeria has enjoyed periods of success. The most notable of these periods are the early contests during the 1950s, and matches that took place in the early 2000s.

FIFA lists the first official match between the two as a World Cup qualifier match in 1960. However both national teams had already engaged in competitive matches dating back to 1950.^[59] The national teams of these two West African countries were formed during the time in which both remained protectorates of the British Empire. At that time the modern-day nation of Ghana was known as the Gold Coast. Nigeria, prior to adopting the national colours of green and white, wore scarlet tops over white shorts and were known as the "Red Devils".^[39] The two sides played for several rivalry and tournament cups during this period in which full international competition was barred to them. The encounter between these two teams is commonly known as the Jollof Derby.^[60]

Cameroon

Nigeria's neighbours to the east, Cameroon, have also played Nigeria a number of times over the years. The teams have met three times in the final of the African Cup of Nations with Cameroon winning each time.^[61] Both carry histories of continental success and World Cup representation that is nearly unrivaled on the African continent.

Their rivalry began in 1960 and since then, Nigeria has proved to be a more dominating team, but in all three AFCON Final matches in 1984, 1988 and 2000, Cameroon prevailed over Nigeria.

Nigeria has qualified for six FIFA World Cup finals, advancing from the group stage three times (1994, 1998 and 2014), getting knocked out in the round of 16 all three times, while Cameroon has qualified eight times, advancing from the group stage only once (1990) though they made it to the quarter-finals in that edition.

Other African nations

There is also a number of competitive matches with Algeria dating back to the 1970s. The two sides met twice in the African Cup of Nations finals, with each nation splitting the win totals. It was a 1–1 draw in Algeria on 8 October 1993 that enabled Nigeria to claim its first World Cup berth in the 1994 edition of the tournament. Nigeria since then had an undefeated streak against Algeria, until the semi-finals of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations when Algeria prevailed over Nigeria.

Nigeria's western neighbour, Benin, has played competitive matches with the team since the period of European colonisation when they were known as Dahomey. But with only two wins and two draws to Benin's credit against Nigeria's fourteen wins, and with the sides having only met six times since 1980, Benin remains a lightly regarded opponent.

Argentina

In five of its first six World Cup appearances, Nigeria was drawn in the group stage with three-time champion Argentina and is regarded by many fans as having fairly acquitted themselves against the footballing giant.^[62] The fixture is the most common in the competition's history involving an African nation.^[63] All five matches have been won by Argentina, but all were by a one-goal margin (2–1 in 1994, 1–0 in 2002, 1–0 in 2010, 3–2 in 2014 and 2–1 in 2018) and have been tightly contested. To date, Nigeria has recorded two wins against Argentina's six, with the victories occurring during friendly matches. Nigeria came close to defeating Argentina in their first meeting, during which they held a lead for some minutes of the match. This was followed by a Confederations Cup match in 1995 which saw Nigeria hold the South Americans to a 0–0 draw. Below full international level, their Olympic teams also faced off in the gold medal match in 1996 (3–2 to Nigeria), and 2008 (1–0 to Argentina). The final of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship was also played between them; both Argentina goals in their 2–1 win were scored by Lionel Messi, who would go on to find the net for the senior team in the 2014^[64] and 2018^[65] World Cup fixtures.

The match-up holds some importance to many Nigerian football fans who regard the challenge as an important measuring stick for the development of Nigerian football. Argentine fans for their part, typically do not regard Nigeria as a rival. Although it means less to Argentine fans, matches against Nigeria are always seen as needing to be played with caution.^{[66][67][68][69]}

The Moshood Abiola National Stadium (formerly known as National Stadium, Abuja) serves as the official home stadium of the Super Eagles. Several international matches are played in other stadiums across the country. However, since the construction of Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, most of the Super Eagles' important home matches have been played there.

Super Eagles match venues

The following is a list of football match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixture

2023

Sierra Leone  v  Nigeria

18 June 2023 AFCON qualification	Sierra Leone	2–3	Nigeria	Monrovia, Liberia
16:00 UTC±0	Bundu 41' Kargbo 84'	Report	Osimhen 19', 32' Iheanacho 90+5'	Stadium: Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex Referee: Mahmood Ismail (Sudan)

Nigeria  v  São Tomé and Príncipe

10 September 2023 AFCON qualification	Nigeria	6–0	São Tomé and Príncipe	Uyo, Nigeria
17:00 UTC+1	Osimhen 13', 69' (pen.), 79' Lookman 27' Awoniyi 51' Chukwueze 84'	Report		Stadium: Godswill Akpabio International Stadium Referee: Lahlou Benbraham (Algeria)

Saudi Arabia  v  Nigeria

13 October Friendly	Saudi Arabia	2–2	Nigeria	Portimão, Portugal
	Al-Faraj 60' Kanno 90+5'	Report	Al-Amri 73' (o.g.) Iheanacho 81'	Stadium: Estádio Municipal de Portimão Referee: Luís Godinho (Portugal)

Mozambique  v  Nigeria

16 October Friendly	Mozambique	2–3	Nigeria	Portimão, Portugal
15:00	Catamo 6' Bangal 55'	Report	Moffi 19' Onyeka 30' Simon 45+3' (pen.)	Stadium: Estádio Municipal de Portimão

Nigeria  v  Lesotho

16 November 2026 World Cup qualification	Nigeria	1–1	Lesotho	Uyo, Nigeria
17:00 UTC+1	Ajayi 67'	Report	Mkwanazi 56'	Stadium: Godswill Akpabio International Stadium Referee: Mehrez Malki (Tunisia)

Zimbabwe  v  Nigeria

19 November 2026 World Cup qualification	Zimbabwe	1–1	Nigeria	Butare, Rwanda
15:00 UTC+2	Musona 26'	Report	Ịheanachọ 67'	Stadium: Stade Huye Referee: Souleiman Ahmed Djama (Djibouti)

2024

Guinea  v  Nigeria

8 January Friendly	Guinea	2–0	Nigeria	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
16:00 UTC+4	Ag. Camara 15' F. Conté 65'	Report		Stadium: Baniyas Stadium

Nigeria  v  Equatorial Guinea

14 January 2023 AFCON GS	Nigeria	1–1	Equatorial Guinea	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
14:00	Osimhen 38'	Report	Salvador 36'	Stadium: Alassane Ouattara Stadium Attendance: 8,500 Referee: Abongile Tom (South Africa)

Ivory Coast  v  Nigeria

18 January 2023 AFCON GS	Ivory Coast	0–1	Nigeria	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
17:00		Report	Troost-Ekong 55' (pen.)	Stadium: Alassane Ouattara Stadium Attendance: 49,517 Referee: Mustapha Ghorbal (Algeria)

Guinea-Bissau  v  Nigeria

22 January 2023 AFCON GS	Guinea-Bissau	0–1	Nigeria	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
17:00		Report	Sanganté 36' (o.g.)	Stadium: Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium Attendance: 15,650 Referee: Bouchra Karboubi (Morocco)

Nigeria  v  Cameroon

27 January 2023 AFCON R16	Nigeria	2–0	Cameroon	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
20:00	Lookman 36', 90'	Report		Stadium: Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium Attendance: 22,085 Referee: Redouane Jiyed (Morocco)

Nigeria  v  Angola

2 February 2023 AFCON QF	Nigeria	1–0	Angola	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
17:00	Lookman 41'	Report		Stadium: Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium Attendance: 18,757 Referee: Issa Sy (Senegal)

Nigeria  v  South Africa

7 February 2023 AFCON SF	Nigeria	1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–2 p)	South Africa	Bouaké, Ivory Coast
17:00	Troost-Ekong 67' (pen.)	Report	Mokoena 90' (pen.)	Stadium: Stade de la Paix Attendance: 31,227[73] Referee: Amin Omar (Egypt)
	Penalties
	Moffi Omeruo Aina Troost-Ekong Iheanacho		Mokoena Mayambela Makgopa Mvala

Nigeria  v  Ivory Coast

11 February 2023 AFCON F	Nigeria	1–2	Ivory Coast	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
20:00	Troost-Ekong 38'	Report	Kessié 62' Haller 81'	Stadium: Alassane Ouattara Stadium Attendance: 57,094 Referee: Dahane Beida (Mauritania)

Nigeria  v  Ghana

22 March Friendly	Nigeria	2–1	Ghana	Marrakech, Morocco
15:00 UTC±0	Dessers 38' (pen.) Lookman 84'	Report	Ayew 90+5' (pen.)	Stadium: Stade de Marrakech Referee: Rédouane Jiyed (Morocco)

Nigeria  v  Mali

26 March Friendly	Nigeria	0–2	Mali	Marrakech, Morocco
19:00 UTC±0		Report	Touré 18' K. Doumbia 87'	Stadium: Stade de Marrakech Referee: Samir Guezzaz (Morocco)

Nigeria  v  South Africa

June 2026 World Cup qualification

Nigeria

v

South Africa

Benin  v  Nigeria

June 2026 World Cup qualification

Benin

v

Nigeria

The current Nigerian (Super Eagles) managerial staff is made up of a technical adviser who serves as the coach in charge of full international matches and a chief coach who serves as the first assistant coach. The second assistant coach is in charge of the home-based team as well as the CHAN tournament and other home based competitions. Other positions also include the technical assistant and the goalkeeper trainer.

Position	Name
Technical director	Augustine Eguavoen
Head coach	Finidi George
Assistant coach I	Emmanuel Amunike
Football ambassador	Daniel Amokachi
Sports administrator	Ayodeji Adegbenro
Goalkeeping coach	Abideen Baruwa
Fitness coach	Kenneth Adeyemi
Video analyst	Afolabi Adebayo
Match analyst	Eboboritse Uwejamomere

Coaching history

Caretaker managers are listed in italics.

Current squad

The following players were called up for the friendly matches against Ghana and Mali on 22 and 26 March 2024.^[74]

Caps and goals correct as of 22 March 2024, after the match against  Mali.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Francis Uzoho	(1998-10-28) 28 October 1998 (age 25)	35	0	Omonia
	1GK	Stanley Nwabili	(1996-06-10) 10 June 1996 (age 27)	11	0	Chippa United
	1GK	Olorunleke Ojo	(1995-08-17) 17 August 1995 (age 28)	0	0	Enyimba
	2DF	Kenneth Omeruo	(1993-10-17) 17 October 1993 (age 30)	68	1	Kasımpaşa
	2DF	Semi Ajayi	(1993-11-09) 9 November 1993 (age 30)	36	1	West Bromwich Albion
	2DF	Chidozie Awaziem	(1997-01-01) 1 January 1997 (age 27)	33	1	Boavista
	2DF	Jamilu Collins	(1994-08-05) 5 August 1994 (age 29)	30	0	Cardiff City
	2DF	Calvin Bassey	(1999-12-31) 31 December 1999 (age 24)	23	0	Fulham
	2DF	Bright Osayi-Samuel	(1997-12-31) 31 December 1997 (age 26)	16	0	Fenerbahçe
	2DF	Tyronne Ebuehi	(1995-12-16) 16 December 1995 (age 28)	12	0	Empoli
	2DF	Bruno Onyemaechi	(1999-04-03) 3 April 1999 (age 25)	6	0	Boavista
	2DF	Benjamin Tanimu	(2002-07-24) 24 July 2002 (age 21)	1	0	Ihefu
	2DF	Gabriel Osho	(1998-08-14) 14 August 1998 (age 25)	0	0	Luton Town
	3MF	Alex Iwobi	(1996-05-03) 3 May 1996 (age 28)	77	10	Fulham
	3MF	Moses Simon	(1995-07-12) 12 July 1995 (age 28)	72	9	Nantes
	3MF	Wilfred Ndidi	(1996-12-16) 16 December 1996 (age 27)	55	0	Leicester City
	3MF	Frank Onyeka	(1998-01-01) 1 January 1998 (age 26)	25	1	Brentford
	3MF	Raphael Onyedika	(2001-04-19) 19 April 2001 (age 23)	7	0	Club Brugge
	3MF	Alhassan Yusuf	(2000-07-18) 18 July 2000 (age 23)	5	0	Antwerp
	3MF	Fisayo Dele-Bashiru	(2001-02-06) 6 February 2001 (age 23)	1	0	Hatayspor
	4FW	Kelechi Iheanacho	(1996-10-03) 3 October 1996 (age 27)	54	15	Leicester City
	4FW	Victor Osimhen	(1998-12-29) 29 December 1998 (age 25)	35	21	Napoli
	4FW	Ademola Lookman	(1997-10-20) 20 October 1997 (age 26)	21	6	Atalanta
	4FW	Umar Sadiq	(1997-02-02) 2 February 1997 (age 27)	11	1	Real Sociedad
	4FW	Taiwo Awoniyi	(1997-08-12) 12 August 1997 (age 26)	8	2	Nottingham Forest
	4FW	Cyriel Dessers	(1994-12-08) 8 December 1994 (age 29)	6	2	Rangers
	4FW	Nathan Tella	(1999-07-05) 5 July 1999 (age 24)	1	0	Bayer Leverkusen

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Nigeria squad within the last twelve months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Adebayo Adeleye	(2000-05-17) 17 May 2000 (age 24)	1	0	Hapoel Jerusalem	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK	Christian Nwoke	(2000-10-27) 27 October 2000 (age 23)	0	0	Sporting Lagos	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK	Amas Obasogie	(1999-12-27) 27 December 1999 (age 24)	0	0	Bendel Insurance	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
GK	Victor Sochima	(1999-01-08) 8 January 1999 (age 25)	0	0	Rivers United	v.  Sierra Leone, 18 June 2023
DF	William Troost-Ekong (vice-captain)	(1993-09-01) 1 September 1993 (age 30)	71	7	PAOK	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
DF	Ola Aina	(1996-10-08) 8 October 1996 (age 27)	40	0	Nottingham Forest	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
DF	Zaidu Sanusi	(1997-06-13) 13 June 1997 (age 26)	22	0	Porto	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
DF	Kevin Akpoguma	(1995-04-19) 19 April 1995 (age 29)	8	0	1899 Hoffenheim	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF	Jordan Torunarigha	(1997-08-07) 7 August 1997 (age 26)	1	0	Gent	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
DF	Ebube Duru	(1999-07-31) 31 July 1999 (age 24)	4	0	Rivers United	v.  Sierra Leone, 18 June 2023
MF	Joe Aribo	(1996-07-21) 21 July 1996 (age 27)	34	2	Southampton	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
MF	Kelechi Nwakali	(1998-06-05) 5 June 1998 (age 25)	4	0	Chaves	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
MF	Peter Etebo	(1995-11-09) 9 November 1995 (age 28)	45	3	Free agent	v.  Sierra Leone, 18 June 2023
MF	Divine Nwachukwu	(2003-05-25) 25 May 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Bendel Insurance	v.  Sierra Leone, 18 June 2023
FW	Ahmed Musa	(1992-10-14) 14 October 1992 (age 31)	109	16	Sivasspor	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW	Samuel Chukwueze	(1999-05-22) 22 May 1999 (age 25)	36	5	Milan	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW	Paul Onuachu	(1994-05-28) 28 May 1994 (age 29)	23	3	Trabzonspor	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW	Terem Moffi	(1999-05-25) 25 May 1999 (age 24)	16	4	Nice	2023 Africa Cup of Nations
FW	Victor Boniface	(2000-12-23) 23 December 2000 (age 23)	5	1	Bayer Leverkusen	2023 Africa Cup of Nations INJ
FW	Emmanuel Dennis	(1997-11-15) 15 November 1997 (age 26)	8	1	İstanbul Başakşehir	2023 Africa Cup of Nations PRE
INJ The player is not part of the current squad due to injury PRE Preliminary squad/standby RET Retired from the national team SUS Serving suspension WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.

As of 26 March 2024^[75]

Players in bold are still active with Nigeria.

Most appearances

Top goalscorers

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup										Qualification
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	F	A	Squad	Pld	W	D	L	F	A	Total
1930	Part of  United Kingdom									Part of  United Kingdom
1934 to 1958	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1962	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	3	6	1962
1966	Withdrew[n 1][76]									Withdrew
1970	Did not qualify									8	3	4	1	15	12	1970
1974										4	1	2	1	3	4	1974
1978										8	3	3	2	17	8	1978
1982										8	3	2	3	8	8	1982
1986										6	5	0	1	11	3	1986
1990										6	3	1	2	7	5	1990
1994	Round of 16	9th	4	2	0	2	7	4	Squad	8	5	2	1	17	5	1994
1998		12th	4	2	0	2	6	9	Squad	6	4	1	1	10	4	1998
2002	Group stage	27th	3	0	1	2	1	3	Squad	10	6	2	2	19	3	2002
2006	Did not qualify									10	6	3	1	21	7	2006
2010	Group stage	27th	3	0	1	2	3	5	Squad	12	9	3	0	20	5	2010
2014	Round of 16	16th	4	1	1	2	3	5	Squad	8	5	3	0	11	4	2014
2018	Group stage	21st	3	1	0	2	3	4	Squad	8	5	2	1	13	6	2018
2022	Did not qualify									8	4	3	1	10	4	2022
2026	To be determined									2	0	2	0	2	2	2026
2030										To be determined
2034
Total	Round of 16	6/16	21	6	3	12	23	30	—	114	62	34	18	187	86	–

Notes

Africa Cup of Nations

Africa Cup of Nations record											Africa Cup of Nations qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad		Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
1957	Not affiliated to CAF										Not affiliated to CAF
1959
1962	Withdrew										4	1	2	1	4	5
1963	Group stage	6th	2	0	0	2	3	10	Squad		2	0	1	1	2	3
1965	Withdrew										Withdrew
1968	Did not qualify										4	1	1	2	4	5
1970	Withdrew										Withdrew
1972	Did not qualify										2	0	1	1	1	2
1974											4	2	1	1	7	9
1976	Third place	3rd	6	3	1	2	11	10	Squad		2	2	0	0	3	1
1978	Third place	3rd	5	2	2	1	8	5	Squad		4	2	1	1	7	4
1980	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	8	1	Squad		Qualified as hosts
1982	Group stage	6th	3	1	0	2	4	5	Squad		Qualified as holders
1984	Runners-up	2nd	5	1	3	1	7	8	Squad		4	1	2	1	2	1
1986	Did not qualify										2	0	1	1	0	1
1988	Runners-up	2nd	5	1	3	1	5	3	Squad		4	2	1	1	6	3
1990	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	0	2	5	6	Squad		4	2	2	0	8	2
1992	Third place	3rd	5	4	0	1	8	5	Squad		8	4	3	1	15	3
1994	Champions	1st	5	3	2	0	9	3	Squad		6	3	2	1	12	1
1996	Withdrew										Qualified as holders
1998	Banned										Banned
2000	Runners-up	2nd	6	4	2	0	12	5	Squad		Qualified as hosts
2002	Third place	3rd	6	3	2	1	5	2	Squad		6	4	2	0	9	1
2004	Third place	3rd	6	4	1	1	11	5	Squad		4	2	2	0	7	3
2006	Third place	3rd	6	4	1	1	7	3	Squad		10	6	3	1	21	7
2008	Quarter-finals	7th	4	1	1	2	3	3	Squad		6	5	0	1	10	3
2010	Third place	3rd	6	3	1	2	6	4	Squad		12	9	3	0	20	5
2012	Did not qualify										6	3	2	1	12	5
2013	Champions	1st	6	4	2	0	11	4	Squad		4	2	2	0	10	3
2015	Did not qualify										6	2	2	2	9	7
2017											4	1	2	1	2	2
2019	Third place	3rd	7	5	0	2	9	7	Squad		6	4	1	1	14	6
2021	Round of 16	9th	4	3	0	1	6	2	Squad		6	4	2	0	14	7
2023	Runners-up	2nd	7	4	2	1	8	4	Squad		6	5	0	1	22	4
2025	To be determined										To be determined
2027
Total	3 Titles	20/36	104	57	24	23	146	95	—		120	62	39	19	199	89

*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided via a penalty shoot-out.

**Red border colour indicates tournament was held on home soil.

African Nations Championship

African Nations Championship record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
2009	Did not qualify
2011
2014	Third place	3rd	6	3	2	1	12	8
2016	Group stage	10th	3	1	1	1	5	3
2018	Runners-up	2nd	6	4	1	1	7	6
2020	Did not qualify
2022
Total	Runners-up	3/7	15	8	4	3	24	17

WAFU Nations Cup

WAFU Nations Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
2010	Champions	1st	5	5	0	0	14
2011	Runners-up	2nd	4	1	0	0	9
2013	Did not enter
2017	Runners-up	2nd	4	1	0	0	9
2019	Quarter Finals
Total	1 Title	3/4	13	7	0	0	32	9

FIFA Confederations Cup

FIFA Confederations Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad
1992	Did not qualify
1995	Fourth place	4th	3	1	2	0	4	1	Squad
1997	Did not qualify
1999
2001
2003
2005
2009
2013	Group stage	5th	3	1	0	2	7	6	Squad
2017	Did not qualify
Total	Fourth place	2/10	6	2	2	2	11	7	-

African Games

African Games record
Year	Result	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1973	Gold medalists	5	4	1	0	14	7
1978	Silver medalists	5	2	2	1	4	2
Total	2/4	0	0	0	0	0	0

• Nigeria national under-23 football team
• Nigeria national under-20 football team
• Nigeria national under-17 football team
• Nigeria national futsal team
• Nigeria national under-20 futsal team
• Nigeria national beach soccer team
• Nigeria women's national football team
• Nigeria women's national under-20 football team
• Nigeria women's national under-17 football team
• Nigeria women's national futsal team

Notes

Citations

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nigeria national football team.

• Nigeria Football Federation – official site
• Nigeria at CAF
• Nigeria at FIFA
• GreenEagles.org – Unofficial Database of The Super Eagles of Nigeria (archived 10 January 2012)
• RSSSF archive of results 1955–2008