Nigeria football faces its biggest crisis in years

Nigeria’s football scene is going through a difficult period, with the country missing two straight World Cups and facing setbacks across several levels of the game. As the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers begin, former international star Segun Odegbami says Nigerian football is going through its “worst time” in history.

Over the past year, both the Super Eagles and Super Falcons failed to qualify for their respective FIFA World Cups. The problems have also reached youth football and African club competitions.

However, there has been a recent positive result. Nigeria’s Under-20 women’s team reached the quarter-finals of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup.

According to Odegbami, the situation shows a major decline for a country that has long been one of Africa’s football powers. The 74-year-old former player said Nigeria had never faced such a difficult period.

Beyond the national teams, he also pointed to problems in the domestic league. He said the local championship is struggling financially and argued that the situation shows deeper issues within Nigerian football.

Meanwhile, the crisis has already led to major changes at the Nigeria Football Federation. NFF president Ibrahim Gusau, general secretary Mohammed Sanusi and several executive committee members resigned last month following growing criticism.

Furthermore, Odegbami has called for a major restructuring of the federation. He argued that Nigerian football needs a long-term plan covering every level of development.

Finally, he said public pressure had become widespread, with Nigerians demanding change. He also pointed to President Bola Tinubu’s call for reforms, saying the different developments could now help create a new blueprint for Nigerian football.