On Friday, the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, released a statement announcing that a fact-finding committee has been set up.
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Their objective is to look into the poor run of the country’s national teams in international competitions, specifically the Super Falcons’ failure to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup finals.
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The Falcons were eliminated from the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, WAFCON, in the quarter-final stage.
Justine Madugu’s women then lost 2-1 to South Africa in the African play-offs.
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It confirmed that Nigeria will not be at the World Cup for the first time since the competition was launched in 1991.
Of course, the men’s team were not at the 2026 World Cup.
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The Super Eagles have not played in the tournament since 2018.
“It is sad. Particularly for the Super Falcons who have qualified for every World Cup since its inception in 1991,” Ayodeji Adegbenro, a sports administrator told news agents.
“We got so used to these girls winning; we stopped preparing them adequately for tournaments,” he added.
There appears to be a steady decline in Nigerian football.
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And this has led to calls for heads to roll inside the NFF.
NFF president, Ibrahim Gusau, who has presented himself for re-election this year, has been roundly criticized and asked to step aside.
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“Those who are asking are right, considering the results under the current administration.
“However, the issue is bigger than Gusau, we need to fix the NFF statues, that is the first step towards getting it right,” Adegbenro said.
Will this fact-finding committee be able to get it right?
Adegbenro said, “I think it’s just deflection on the part of the NFF.
“What happens if this committee indicts the NFF in their investigation?”
So, what is the solution to the worrying issues in Nigerian football?
“Our football needs a hard reset, we need to clean the proverbial augean stables,” Adegbenro added.
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