Former President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick, has attributed the Super Eagles’ failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup to the recently introduced qualification format. Speaking in a recent interview, Pinnick said the revised system, which reduced the number of qualifying matches, disadvantaged African teams, including Nigeria.
According to Pinnick, the new format gives teams less room to recover from early setbacks, making a single poor result potentially decisive. He noted that the Eagles faced several challenges during the qualifiers, including injuries to key players and scheduling conflicts, which compounded the effects of the revised system.
Pinnick stressed that under the previous qualification format, Nigeria’s squad depth and tactical adaptability would have provided a better chance to navigate the qualifiers successfully. He emphasized that football authorities need to ensure proper consultation before introducing changes that significantly affect national teams.
He also urged fans to remain supportive of the Super Eagles, noting that the failure to qualify does not reflect a lack of talent or effort but is largely due to the unintended consequences of administrative changes by CAF and FIFA.
Pinnick concluded by calling on African football governing bodies to engage in consultative processes and include stakeholders in decision-making, emphasizing that such steps could prevent similar setbacks in future competitions.
