Mikel Obi Undergoes Surgery in UK

Nigerian footballer, Mikel Obi has revealed that he recently underwent surgery at the Princess Grace Hospital in the United Kingdom. The football star revealed this in photos shared on his Instagram story on Saturday. He, however, did not disclose the nature of the surgery. Sharing a picture he took before the operation, he wrote, “Pre-op, let’s go.” Another picture of him lying on the bed at the hospital post-surgery was captioned, “All good, #PostOp.” In April 2017, Obi was reported to have undergone a successful surgery in the UK, after which he began rehabilitation for proper recovery.

CAF Announces New Dates for AFCON, WAFCON

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has released the new dates for the CAF TotalEnergies African Cup of Nations (AFCON) and the Women African Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco. The CAF executive committee confirmed the dates during a meeting on Friday and published on its official website. AFCON will take place from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026. The Women’s tournament, originally scheduled for this year, has been rescheduled to July 5 to July 26, 2025. CAF President Patrice Motsepe explained that the delay in announcing the dates was due to the crowded global football calendar. Despite the delay, Motsepe expressed optimism about the tournaments in Morocco, anticipating they will be the best in the continent’s history. “The announcement of the dates for the CAF TotalEnergies AFCON Morocco 2025 took longer than expected due to complex and challenging discussions with various stakeholders, considering the extensive International and Domestic Match Calendars,” Motsepe stated. “CAF is dedicated to protecting and advancing the interests of African players competing in clubs across Europe and worldwide. We are also committed to fostering beneficial relationships with the ECA, UEFA, other Football Confederations, and FIFA. We will continue to make significant progress in developing African football to ensure it is globally competitive and among the best in the world,” he added.

NFF Considers Three Coaches to Replace Finidi George as Super Eagles Boss

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has narrowed down its search for a new head coach for the Super Eagles to three candidates. This follows the resignation of Finidi George last weekend. With the team’s fixtures in the next window fast approaching in September, the NFF is under pressure to make a swift decision. According to sources, the three coaches in contention for the top job are Antonio Conceicao, Samson Siasia, and Salisu Yusuf. Antonio Conceicao, a Portuguese coach, boasts an impressive resume with stints in Romania, Cyprus, and Saudi Arabia. His tactical skills and player development expertise make him a strong contender for the role. He was fired by Cameroon in 2022 but is eager to return to coaching. Samson Siasia, a former Super Eagles coach, also has an impressive coaching record, particularly with youth teams. He led Nigeria’s U-20 and U-23 teams to podium finishes at various tournaments, including the Olympic Games. Although his FIFA ban for match-fixing is set to expire in August, his controversial past still raises eyebrows. Salisu Yusuf, a Nigerian coach, has an impressive track record in the domestic league, winning NPFL titles with Kano Pillars. He has experience as Assistant Coach of the Super Eagles and Head Coach of the Super Eagles B team.

NFF Blames Benin FA For Wrong Anthem Played Before Super Eagles’ 2-1 Defeat

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has blamed the Benin Football Federation for the wrong national anthem that was played before the Super Eagles took on the Cheetahs on Monday, June 10. Super Eagles of Nigeria had to sing the old anthem, “Arise, O Compatriots” instead of the “Nigeria, We Hail Thee” ahead of their game against Benin at the Felix Houphouët-Boigny stadium in Abidjan, Benin Republic’s adopted home ground. Note that the “Nigeria, We Hail Thee” anthem was used from 1960 when Nigeria gained independence until it was replaced by “Arise, O Compatriots” in 1978. But the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu reintroduced it in May 2024 to replace “Arise, O Compatriots”. The Super Eagles of Nigeria sang the reintroduced anthem before their 1-1 draw with the Bafana Bafana of South Africa on Friday, June 7. But they found themselves singing the just replaced “Arise, O Compatriots” before their 2-1 defeat to Benin Republic on June 10. However, while the Super Eagles were coming out for the second half of the game, the reintroduced anthem ushered them onto the pitch. After the disappointing defeat, NFF’s Director of Media and Communications, Ademola Olajire, explained that the football federation had handed a recording of the new national anthem to the Benin FA authorities at the Match Coordination Meeting in Abidjan on Sunday. Also, a statement from NFF’s Head of International Competitions, Dayo Enebi Achor, confirmed that the federation had given the recording of the new anthem to the Benin FA. “We gave them the recording of our new national anthem, only for them to play the wrong one at the beginning of the match. We protested strongly and insisted that the Super Eagles would not start the second half until the new national anthem of Nigeria was played,” he said.

FIFA Debunks Introduction of Blue Card

After reports emerged last week that the International Football Association Board had signed off on the trials of introducing blue card to football, FIFA president, Gianni Infantino has rejected the proposed plan.  It would have been the first time since the introduction of the classic yellow and red cards at the 1970 World Cup that a new card would be used in football. However, following an immediate backlash to the plans, Infantino has now told Sky UK such card does not exist. “Blue cards? This is a topic that is non existent for us,” he said. “If you want a title it is: red card to the blue card. No chance, no way.”

Tinubu Rewards Super Eagles With National Awards, Flats, Lands

President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday honoured the Super Eagles of Nigeria with the national award of Member of the Order of the Niger (MON), presenting them with flats in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and parcels of land.  The announcement was made during a reception for the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) delegation, led by the Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh, at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.  The president praised the team, coach, crew, and management for their dedication and perseverance throughout the Africa Cup of Nations, where they secured the runner-up position.  Tinubu encouraged Nigerians to stay positive, highlighting the team’s remarkable journey and calling for unity and continued effort towards national success. “Let this passing event not dispirit us but bring us together to work harder. We are a great nation bound as one by the green-white-green banner of resilience, joy, hope, duty, and untiring love. “To those cherished Nigerian youths expressing their gifts in communities, drawing lines in the sand as they play football in their humble rectangles of play, you can be our heroes tomorrow, do not relent in your pursuit. My administration is here to make dreams come true,” the president said.

William Troost-Ekong Insists Super Eagles Can Still Do Well In 2023 AFCON

Super Eagles of Nigeria vice-captain, William Troost-Ekong is adamant that the players possess the proper mindset to do well in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON). William Troost-Ekong stated this following the Super Eagles’ abysmal performance in their opening game at the 2023 AFCON which ended in a 1-1 draw against lowly-rated Equatorial Guinea. During the game, Troost-Ekong and his teammates had to fight from a goal down to grab a 1-1 draw courtesy of a header from the team’s talisman, Victor Osimhen. This terrible start from the three-time winners of the tournament has raised fear in the minds of football enthusiasts ahead of their second group stage game which is against the hosts, Ivory Coast on Thursday. Hence, Jose Peseiro’s men are currently under pressure ahead of their clash with the hosts, who already lead Group A with three points after winning their opening game 2-0 against Guinea-Bissau. After the 1-1 draw on Sunday, the attitude of the players towards winning a fourth AFCON title was questioned, but Troost-Ekong said they were not unaware of the task ahead as he confirmed that the team had a meeting ahead of their next game. “We’ve spoken about this so much, we have Kenneth (Omeruo) and (Ahmed) Musa who have won the AFCON with us and they told us exactly how that journey was. Some of the guys like myself, who were there in 2019, also explained exactly how it was to get to the semi-final and take the bronze,” William Troost-Ekong said. “You know in football, it’s not always when you want something that you get it. The other teams too, you have to respect them as well.” As it stands, the Super Eagles must not be defeated when they face Ivory Coast on Thursday. A draw or a win will keep them comfortably in the competition. If they beat Ivory Coast, a draw against Guinea-Bissau on Monday will be enough to seal a place in the round of 16. But if they lose to Ivory Coast, they must beat Guinea-Bissau and hope that Ivory Coast beat Equatorial Guinea.

NFF Working Diligently To Ensure National Teams Attain Greater Heights – Gusau

President of Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau on Tuesday disclosed that the football-governing body is working assiduously to ensure that all the National Teams perform much better in their competitions in the next one year, than they have done in the past year. He made this pledge while reviewing the activities of the NFF and the teams in one year of his Board in office, and also articulating expectations for the next one year. While highlighting the achievements of the past year, which included a first-ever podium finish at the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, quarter-final performance of the Flying Eagles at the FIFA U20 World Cup, qualification of the Super Eagles to the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and best-ever outing by the Super Falcons at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Gusau asseverated that the Board and Secretariat have worked in tandem to remove toxicity from the system and enable a more conducive environment for the game in the country. “One of our priorities on coming into office was to ensure that the football environment was cleansed of so much toxicity that had threatened the health of the game and made some persons feel unwelcome in the system. We have tried our best to give everyone a sense of belonging with a policy of inclusiveness. “Off the pitch, we are proud of the work of the Interim Management Committee that we constituted to organize the last NPFL League Season, which was commended by all stakeholders, and we also feel fulfilled about the constitution of the Boards of the NNL, NWFL and NLO with vibrant, knowledgeable and competent individuals who are capable of taking the leagues to the next level. Elections into the State FAs have also been largely peaceful and successful.” Gusau said his board will work assiduously and diligently with the secretariat and the Federal Ministry of Sports Development to see the Super Eagles off to a great start in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying series and to win the 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire early next year. “We also want to see the Super Falcons reclaim their African title and return to the Women Olympic Football Tournament. Our expectations include making good progress in our plan for hostel accommodation and some playing pitches for the National Teams, through the FIFA Forward 3.0 program, and also see that the U17 and U20 Women National Teams achieve their best-ever outings at their different World Cups next year. “We are working already with the new NPFL Board to grow the NPFL into the product that all administrators and stakeholders desire, and also with the boards of the other Leagues to improve the state of our domestic football. To achieve all these, we need money, so we are also looking to work even harder to grow our revenue base through aggressive marketing drive.” The NFF boss said his team will also not allow any FIFA window for friendly matches to go unutilized. “As you can see, we have arranged two matches for the Super Eagles in this month’s window, against Saudi Arabia and Mozambique. Mozambique is in southern Africa where three of our opponents in the World Cup qualifiers, namely Lesotho, Zimbabwe and South Africa also are. Playing Mozambique is a good opportunity for the team to have a sneak preview of what to expect against these three teams.” Also at the parley were NFF Executive Committee Members H. E. Ali Silas Agara and Mr. George Aluo; NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi; Chairman of Anambra State FA, Chikelue Iloenyosi; NFF Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire; Director of Competitions, Ruth David and; Head of Member Associations, Ali Abubakar Muhammad. Abdulrahaman takes over from Adesanya as COO, Nigeria National League Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has deployed Dr. Ayo Hameed Abdulrahaman to the Nigeria National League as the chief operating officer, to take over from Mr. Emmanuel Adesanya who has retired from the Federal Civil Service after attaining the age of 60 years. Abdulrahaman, who holds a doctorate degree in physical and health education, has robust sphere and institutional experience in football organization and administration. He is a deputy director in the Federal Civil Service. Before his deployment, Dr. Abdulrahaman worked as deputy director in the NFF Competitions Department. He had also worked for many years previously as chief operating officer of the NNL, and also in the same capacity in the Nigeria Women Football League.