Pressure From Lobbyists Delays Super Eagles’ AFCON Squad Announcement

The Super Eagles of Nigeria’s final squad list for the Morocco 2025 Africa Cup of Nations is expected today, December 11, after behind-the-scenes lobbying reportedly slowed down the process, a source inside the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has revealed.

Naija News reports that some top officials in the NFF met in Abuja this week to deliberate over the delayed Super Eagles’ squad announcement and other speculations surrounding the team.

NFF Media Director, Ademola Olajire, confirmed to The Guardian that the long-awaited list would be released today.

However, a senior federation source insisted the announcement should have come much earlier if not for “some top-placed individuals lobbying for their players to make the squad.”

CAF’s deadline for all 24 participating countries expires today. Each team must submit up to 23 players, with the option to extend the list to 28, as long as the federation is willing to cover the cost of the additional five.

Any nation that misses the submission window faces sanctions, including the loss of two squad slots, meaning CAF will only cater for 21 players instead of the standard 23.

The insider, who asked not to be named, explained that officials were trying to resolve “the problem” without disrupting Coach Eric Chelle’s blueprint for the tournament. When asked about the claims, Olajire simply responded that “the list will come out tomorrow [today, December 11].”

In a related development, the Super Eagles’ training camp will now open in Cairo on Saturday following changes triggered by FIFA’s directive that clubs must release players on or before December 15 for the AFCON.

The source added: “I don’t know if the friendly game with Egypt will still be played on December 16, as the Nigerian delegation will start arriving in Cairo on December 13. But in any case, we will still have up to three days from the day we arrive to prepare for the game on December 16.”

Nigeria had originally lined up a friendly against Egypt on December 14 and another warm-up match against an unnamed opponent in Cairo before heading to Morocco.

The Super Eagles begin their Group C campaign against Tanzania on December 23 at the Complexe Sportif de Fès, followed by a clash with Tunisia on December 27 and a meeting with Uganda on December 31.