Talent abroad, failure at home

Nigerian footballers shine in Europe’s top leagues, yet we cannot assemble a team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup. For the second consecutive cycle, Nigeria failed to qualify despite a ₦20 billion budget to prepare for the qualifying rounds.

The cost of failure is staggering. Nigeria lost $12.5 million in direct FIFA payments, money meant to strengthen our football.

The price of absence

World Cup participation is more than national pride;