The sports minister’s top official visited the team’s Abuja camp before the squad flew out to Burkina Faso. Nigeria has not played at a U-17 World Cup since 2019.
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The Director General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade, has told the Golden Eaglets to win the WAFU B U-17 Championship and end Nigeria’s drought at the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The team flies to Burkina Faso on Tuesday.
Head coach Eboboritse Uwejamomere leads the squad at the tournament, which runs from October 10 to 23 in Ouagadougou. Finishing well there is the first step toward the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations and, ultimately, the World Cup.
Olopade made his plea during a morale-boosting visit to the team’s training camp at the FIFA Goal Project pitch in Abuja on Monday. He urged the players to embrace the responsibility of representing the country.
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A Long Wait for the World Stage
Nigeria last played at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2019, in Brazil. The Eaglets topped Group B ahead of Ecuador, Australia and Hungary, winning two games and losing one, but their run ended in a 3-1 defeat to the Netherlands in the round of 16.
Olopade told the players that the whole country is looking to them to end the wait. “We no dey carry last,” he said, and he asked them to go to Burkina Faso, win the tournament and keep the chain going toward the World Cup.
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The Weight of History
Few countries carry as much youth-football history as Nigeria. Is that history a gift for this group, or a burden that will weigh on them every time they step on the pitch?
Olopade clearly hopes it is the first. He encouraged the players to stay disciplined, focused and united, and he promised that the nation would show its gratitude if they deliver.
The task is simple on paper, but regional tournaments rarely go to plan. A strong start in the group would calm nerves and show that the Eaglets can handle the pressure.
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📌 Did You Know?
- Nigeria are the record five time winners of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, with titles in 1985, 1993, 2007, 2013 and 2015.
- The 2013 and 2015 wins made Nigeria the first nation to reach five championships at the tournament.
- Nwankwo Kanu, Kelechi Iheanacho and Victor Osimhen all came through Nigeria’s U-17 ranks.
- The squad trained at the FIFA Goal Project pitch in Abuja before flying out.
- Uwejamomere named a 25-man squad made up of three goalkeepers, seven defenders, eight midfielders and seven forwards.
