Nigeria’s Qualification For 2026 World Cup Non-Negotiable, Sports Minister Tells Super Eagles

… Demands Better Performance Against Zimbabwe On Sunday

Nigeria’s Sports Minister, Senator John Enoh, has called on the Super Eagles to up their game against Zimbabwe in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers on Sunday.

The Super Eagles started their qualifiers campaign on a disappointing note with a 1-1 draw against lowly rated Lesotho at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium, Uyo.

Semi Ajayi snatched a point for Jose Peseiro’s men in the 67th minute to ensure the share of the spoils.

The Minister was at the Stadium to support the team but the team could not repay his support with a resounding win.

He has now urged the team to correct all the lapses and put smiles on the faces of Nigerians against Zimbabwe.

“I urge the Nigeria Football Federation to look into and correct all the lapses observed in Thursday’s match with the aim of putting in a much better performance in Rwanda on Sunday against Zimbabwe.

“The Government and football-loving people of Nigeria take the qualification for the 2026 World Cup very seriously and want the Super Eagles to qualify.

“Having missed out on the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, qualifying for the 2026 World Cup is not negotiable.”

Senator Enoh also shed light on the reason Nigerians could not watch the match against Lesotho on television.

He said, “We understand that the qualifiers are FIFA-organized, and so the television broadcasting rights are in the World Football Governing Body’s purview.

“It is not good enough that many Nigerians could not watch their National team play in their country. A repeat of the same should be avoided and NFF will be expected to register Nigeria’s displeasure with the appropriate authority in FIFA.”

The team will be hoping to bounce back against Zimbabwe on Sunday with a top performance to get their qualification race on track.

The Super Eagles failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar after falling short against Ghana in the final playoff.