Tunde Folawiyo

In Nigeria, non-sport has gripped the national imagination the way that football has. It is the country’s most popular sport by a landslide. A larger percent of the country’s population are fans of the sport than in any other country in the world, a recent market poll has shown. The country’s national team, nicknamed the Super Eagles, received the highest ranking any African football team has earned in 1994, when the FIFA World Rankings showed the team in fifth world-wide. The team is currently ranked at fifth in the Confederation of African Football, and 39^th worldwide. Fans of football in Nigeria, including Tunde Folawiyo, are looking forward to seeing the team live up to its potential. For more information, please visit this Tunde Folawiyo blog.

Unofficial games among other African colonies start Nigeria’s national football history in the 1930s, and official records start in the late 1940s. The team’s history as champions began with a win at the second All-Africa games, where the team was awarded the gold medal in 1976. Strong showings at the African Cup of Nations followed, and the team took their first Cup in 1980, led by Muda Lawal. A treasured moment in Nigerian National Football history is the team’s Olympic gold in Atlantic in 1996. The team played its first World Cup in 1994. In this year’s Cup, Nigeria opened with a tie against Iran before a 0-1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina showed the team their first World Cup victory since 1998. The winning goal was scored by Peter Odemwingie, who was born in the former Soviet Union and raised in Russia and Nigeria. Odemwingie has played for the Nigerian National Team since 2002.

The Nigerian women’s national team has also been a force in the sport. The team has never failed to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, and won the CAF Women’s Championship every year it ran, until breaking their streak with a defeat by Equatorial Guinea in 2008. As with the men’s team, outstanding players for the women’s team have also had successful careers playing internationally. Mercy Akide went on to play for the San Diego Spirit and the Hampton Road Piranhas, and current team captain and CAF African Women Footballer of the Year in 2004 and 2005 Perpetua Nkwocha also plays for Swedish club Sunnana SK.

The World Cup is just three months away, and the Super Eagles are now nearing the end of their preparatory work for the tournament. The travel arrangements have been made, friendly matches have been scheduled, and the CAF (Confederation of African Football) has pledged to support the team throughout the event. Confirmation of this support was made following a meeting which the CAF had in Cairo earlier this month; a statement released by the organisation noted that it would be covering the costs of the teams’ accommodation throughout the World Cup.

With the financial aspects of the trip now dealt with, the biggest question is – who will Keshi select for the final squad? As a fan of the Super Eagles, this is something which Tunde Folawiyo is probably quite curious about. Up until recently, Keshi has been less than forthcoming about who he wants on the squad, but in a recent interview, he did admit to having had a number of discussions with Imoh Ezekiel, the striker for Standard Liege, about the possibility of him representing Nigeria at the World Cup. Keshi stated that he had been in ‘constant contact’ with the player, and that Ezekiel had promised that he would make himself available for the World Cup.

Whilst the manager has begun to open up about this subject, he has not yet spoken about which goalkeeper he will choose. Fans of the Super Eagles, including Tunde Folawiyo, might be aware that Vincent Enyeama has been Keshi’s preferred keeper for quite some time, having made regular appearances on the pitch for Nigeria over the past twelve years.

But some have speculated that Enyeama is no longer the manager’s top choice, and that Austin Ejide might be in the running for the World Cup squad. Ejide performed well at the team’s matches against Cape Verde and Venezuela, and Keshi has spoken positively about his goalkeeping skills in the past.

With the exception of the squad selection, most of the larger issues relating to the World Cup have been addressed. Now, Keshi and the rest of the management staff are focusing on the finer points of the tournament, and are collaborating with Adidas, to ensure that the players look their best when they step out onto the pitch in June.

This month, the team were informed that they will be given brand new kits for their matches in Brazil; a representative from Adidas, their apparel sponsor, stated that the new uniform would feature a lighter green base, with dark green pinstripes. Adidas have imprinted their own iconic white stripes on to the sleeves, and have added the word ‘Nigeria’ onto the back of the shirt.