The Super Falcons defender took to her verified Instagram to shut down a Facebook impersonation account that accused NFF officials of demanding bribes and claimed she was set to withdraw from the national team.
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Super Falcons defender Ashleigh Plumptre has publicly rejected claims being circulated through a fake Facebook account bearing her name, FootballInNigeria.com.ng reports. The impersonating account alleged that Nigeria Football Federation officials had demanded a bribe from her and that she was considering stepping back from the Super Falcons as a result. Plumptre has categorically stated that the account is not hers and that she does not even use Facebook.
The fake page, which had accumulated over 2,000 followers and carried the appearance of a verified account, claimed Plumptre had been dropped from the squad for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations after refusing to meet the demands of what the post described as “corrupt officials.” The post spread quickly across social media, drawing widespread reactions from Nigerian football followers before Plumptre moved to correct the record.
Reacting on Tuesday via her verified Instagram account, which carries over 130,000 followers, the 31 year old Al Ittihad Ladies defender was direct: “Please report and block these fake Facebook accounts. They’re running riot for real. I don’t even use Facebook.” She later added further context on X, revealing this has been an ongoing problem. “Awful false accounts. They are using my identity and scamming people. I’m currently contacting someone in Saudi Arabia to help me take these accounts down because this has been happening for well over a year now.”
NFF Also Steps In to Clear the Air
The Nigeria Football Federation did not stay quiet either. The federation’s Director of Competitions, Ruth David, issued a statement dismissing the claims entirely and warning media workers and members of the public to verify social media content before amplifying it further.
David noted that this type of misinformation has targeted Super Falcons players before, citing past incidents involving Esther Okoronkwo and Asisat Oshoala as examples of how damaging fake accounts can be when their content spreads unchecked. She also confirmed that the squad list for WAFCON 2026 has not yet been submitted by the coach, making the claim that Plumptre had been dropped entirely baseless.
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Who Is Ashleigh Plumptre, and Why Does This Matter?
Plumptre is arguably the most recognisable name in the Super Falcons’ backline right now. Born in Leicester, England, she grew up supporting Leicester City and played through the England youth setup at under-15, under-17, under-19 and under-23 level before making a decisive switch to represent Nigeria in 2022 through her paternal grandfather, who was born in Lagos.
Her move to the Super Falcons has paid off spectacularly. She was part of the squad that reached the round of 16 at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, where they pushed England to a penalty shootout in a 0-0 draw before bowing out. In 2024, she was a key figure in Nigeria’s triumphant WAFCON campaign in Morocco, winning her first continental title and earning inclusion in the Group Stage Best XI. The government awarded her an Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) honour and a three-bedroom apartment in Abuja following that win.
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A Problem That Has Persisted for Over a Year
What makes this incident particularly frustrating for Plumptre is that it is not new. She revealed the fake accounts have been circulating and scamming people under her identity for more than a year. The NFF’s Ruth David confirmed this too, noting that Plumptre had made a video last year specifically to state that she has no Facebook presence and that anyone claiming to be her on the platform is an impersonator.
The fact that the latest post gained enough traction to draw widespread public reaction, and even require an official NFF response, shows how persistent and damaging these accounts can be when left unchecked. Plumptre is currently in recovery from a foot surgery that her club Al Ittihad Ladies confirmed was successful in late March 2026, making any unnecessary controversy around her status doubly unwelcome ahead of a tournament she wants to be fit for.
The Super Falcons head into WAFCON 2026 as defending champions, with the 14th edition of the tournament scheduled to run from July 25 to August 16 in Morocco. For Plumptre, cutting through the noise of fake accounts and getting herself to full fitness remains the only agenda that matters right now. Anyone circulating the fabricated claims is simply wasting everyone’s time. Bet9ja’s referral bonus is a better use of attention for fans in the buildup to the tournament.
📌 Did You Know?
- Ashleigh Plumptre shares the same birthday, May 8, as Super Falcons legend Onome Ebi, the first African footballer, male or female, to appear at six FIFA World Cups. Ebi publicly praised Plumptre as the ideal successor to her No. 5 jersey following WAFCON 2024.
- Plumptre holds a degree in human biology from the University of Southern California, where she also won a national championship with the USC Trojans in college soccer in 2016, representing her as part of a White House celebration in 2017.
- Before declaring for Nigeria, Plumptre represented England at youth level for nearly a decade, appearing at under-15, under-17, under-19 and under-23 level, playing alongside names including Alessia Russo, Georgia Stanway and Chloe Kelly in her earlier years.
- Plumptre scored eight goals in 12 games during her debut season with Al Ittihad Ladies in Saudi Arabia in 2023-24, a remarkable return for a central defender at any level of professional football.
- She is a global ambassador for Mission 89, a Swiss-based organisation that works to combat child trafficking in sport and protect young athletes from exploitation within football systems.
- The NFF confirmed that the fake Facebook page targeting Plumptre is part of a pattern that has also been used against other Super Falcons players including Esther Okoronkwo and Asisat Oshoala in previous months.
- Nigeria’s WAFCON 2026 campaign will be a title defence, with the Super Falcons having won the 2024 edition in Morocco. A successful defence would give them ten WAFCON titles overall, cementing their status as the most decorated side in the competition’s history.
