The decision by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to exclude Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets from the expanded 2025 U-17 AFCON in Morocco is a major setback for the country’s youth football development.
Despite finishing third at last year’s WAFU B U-17 Championship in Ghana, the Golden Eaglets fell short in the qualifiers with Ivory Coast and winners Burkina Faso picking the automatic spots in the region.
CAF has now allotted four slots in the expanded tournament to the Gambia, who finished third at the WAFU Zone A qualifiers; Tunisia and two countries from the CECAFA and COSAFA regions
With Nigeria boasting a record five-time FIFA U-17 World Cup victories, missing out on this continental showpiece raises critical questions about the state of the nation’s grassroots football and qualification structures.
Implications of Missing the U-17 AFCON
- Lost World Cup Opportunity
The U-17 AFCON serves as the qualifier for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which will be held in Qatar in November 2025. By missing out on the continental tournament, Nigeria has automatically lost the chance to compete on the global stage. This means a generation of young Nigerian players will miss the exposure that has historically helped launch the careers of stars like Nwankwo Kanu, Victor Osimhen, and Kelechi Iheanacho. - Impact on Talent Development
Nigerian football has long relied on the U-17 system as a stepping stone for nurturing future Super Eagles stars. - Missing this AFCON denies young players the opportunity to compete at an elite level, slowing down their development and potentially affecting the pipeline of talent moving up to the senior national team.
- WAFU B Performance and Qualification Gaps
The fact that Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast secured the automatic WAFU B slots raises concerns about Nigeria’s qualification strategy. - The Golden Eaglets finished third at the WAFU B U-17 Championship in Ghana, yet other regions like WAFU A and COSAFA have been granted additional slots. This brings into question CAF’s selection process and whether Nigeria’s football authorities did enough to push for inclusion.
- Need for Structural Reforms in Nigerian Youth Football
This snub highlights a larger issue in Nigerian football administration—the need for better scouting, preparation, and investment in grassroots development. While Nigeria has historically dominated U-17 tournaments, recent performances suggest other African nations are catching up due to more structured and efficient youth programs.
The Way Forward for Nigeria
- Revamping the Youth Football System: The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) must re-evaluate its approach to youth development by improving scouting networks, strengthening the domestic youth league, and ensuring early and consistent team preparation for qualifiers.
- Better Qualification Strategy: Nigeria must aim to finish among the top two in future WAFU B tournaments, ensuring an automatic place rather than hoping for CAF’s discretionary slots.
- Advocating for Fair Slot Allocation: The NFF and Ministry of Sports should engage with CAF to ensure that in future expanded tournaments, Nigeria, as a historical football powerhouse, is not overlooked.
- Sustained Player Development: Even in the absence of the U-17 AFCON, the country must not abandon the current U-17 crop. Friendly tournaments, training camps, and exposure to competitive matches should be organized to keep these young players in shape for future national team call-ups.
The Golden Eaglets’ exclusion from the 2025 U-17 AFCON is a wake-up call for Nigerian football. While it is a disappointment, it should also serve as motivation to reassess, rebuild, and re-establish Nigeria as Africa’s leading force in youth football.
Failure to act now could mean missing out on future generations of football talent and falling behind emerging African nations.
