Chelle Vows Super Eagles Will Win AFCON Title in 2027

Super Eagles head coach Éric Chelle has pledged to bring the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) trophy home to Nigeria at the 2027 edition following the team’s bronze-medal finish at AFCON 2025 in Morocco. The Franco-Malian manager made the comment while reflecting on Nigeria’s performance after they ended the tournament with a third-place victory over Egypt.

Chelle acknowledged that although returning with third place was not his original aim — he had told his parents he planned to come back with the trophy the experience in Morocco was valuable and has laid a foundation for future success. He expressed relief and pride in his squad’s effort, despite falling short of the final and missing out on qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Looking ahead to the next AFCON finals to be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda in 2027 — Chelle said he is already planning for another shot at Africa’s biggest prize and believes the Super Eagles have the quality to return as champions. “And we’ll meet again in two years, and God willing, I’ll bring that trophy home,” he told reporters.

Chelle’s comments underline his ambition for Nigeria’s national team to build on their positive run in Morocco and target continental glory in the next cycle of African football’s flagship tournament.

EDITORIAL

In football, ambition without direction is little more than rhetoric; it is the marriage of certainty and preparation that defines genuine contenders. Éric Chelle’s vow to win the AFCON 2027 title with the Super Eagles is not merely the optimistic reverie of a coach buoyed by a third-place finish in Morocco — it is a declaration rooted in the quiet confidence of progress.

Nigeria’s campaign at AFCON 2025 was a study in resilience. From group stages to the drama of knockout football, the Super Eagles exhibited a blend of verve and discipline that suggested this was more than a transitional squad it was a team with narrative arc and tactical cohesion. The bronze medal, won after a tense penalty shootout against Egypt, was more than hardware it was institutional momentum. In a world where football often celebrates the immediate and forgets the incremental, Chelle’s proclamation positions this squad on a longer arc of development.

Such ambition, however, demands more than platitudes. It necessitates structural continuity, measured evolution, and an understanding that the margins in African football are slim. Tactically, Chelle has already shown a capacity to navigate pressure and extract performance balancing defensive organisation with attacking intent. But the transition from podium finish to continental champion requires a culture that sustains growth through adversity and fluency through adaptation.

Chelle’s reflection on telling his parents he would bring back the trophy and instead returning with bronze — reveals a candid coach aware of the folly of perfection but undeterred by it. This balance of realism and resolve is precisely what distinguishes coaching lore from coaching legend. The fans may yearn for silverware the federation may thirst for trophies but it is the patient construction of winning identity that transforms promise into precedent.

AFCON 2027 looms as both opportunity and judgement a chance for Nigeria to translate potential into silver, and for Chelle to demonstrate that bronze was not consolation, but prelude.

DID YOU KNOW?

1. AFCON 2027 will be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, marking the first time the tournament is staged across three East African nations.
2. Nigeria has not won an AFCON title since 2013, despite frequent deep runs in the competition.
3. The Super Eagles scored a tournament-high 14 goals at AFCON 2025, their highest total ever in a single edition.
4. Chelle remained unbeaten in regular time during AFCON 2025, with Nigeria drawing only in regulation before penalties in both the semi-final and third-place matches.
5. Nigeria has won the AFCON title three times — in 1980, 1994 and 2013 — positioning them among Africa’s most successful national teams historically.