Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has expressed sadness over the non-qualification of Nigeria’s Super Eagles for the ongoing 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.

He expressed outrage yesterday when President Bola Tinubu commissioned the 7km Kuje-Gwagwalada dual carriageway.

Wike echoed his displeasure in his remarks, in response to the warm reception accorded former Super Eagles Captain, Joseph Yobo, who was part of his delegation.

The minister, told Vice President Shettima Kashim, who represented the President that the Nigerian public felt disgusted by the absence of the national team at the expanded 48-team World Cup final, characterised by the gallantry of some of the African representatives, including Morocco, Ghana, Cape Verde, DR Congo and Ivory Coast.

Unfortunately, African power house, Nigeria failed to stamp it’s seventh appearance to the global football fiesta after Eagles were edged in the African playoffs final by DR Congo.

“Before I leave, yes, we have congratulated one of our stars, Joseph Yobo. Let me use the medium through you to tell the Super Eagles, we are not happy. The moment they said ‘Super Eagles’, I said I won’t clap. Because I watch the World Cup and I see countries I’ve never heard before, qualifying to play World Cup. “I’m sitting down for hours, watching countries that I’ve never known. Nigerians, in this context, not less than 13 players of Nigerian ancestry, playing all over the world for other countries but here, we did not qualify. Yobo, go and tell them we are not happy,” Wike said.

Nigeria’s absence from the FIFA World Cup is the third time this millennium that the Super Eagles will be missing the Mundial. Angola stopped Eagles from the 2006 edition in Germany.

The story was the same four years ago when Super Eagles were denied the chance to be at the first edition to be hosted by Qatar in the Middle East. Thunder struck again when DR Congo snatched the African ticket to the Intercontinental playoffs in Mexico last March. The Congolese qualified for the 2026 edition in North America with just one game played in Mexico.

RESULTS

Group B: Switzerland 2-1 Canada

Group B: Bosnia & H 3-1 Qatar

Group C: Scotland 0-3 Brazil

Group C: Morocco 4-2 Haiti

TODAY

Thursday, June 25

Group A: Czech Rep vs. Mexico (Mexico City),

Group A: South Africa vs. South Korea (Mexico)

Group E: Ecuador vs. Germany (East Rutherford, N.J.)

Group E: Curacao vs. Ivory Coast (Philadelphia)