Nigeria’s Tremendous Eagles have lengthy been one among Africa’s prime soccer groups, however the newest FIFA rankings inform a distinct story with Nigeria now sixth in Africa.
Though Nigeria moved as much as forty third on the earth, the workforce has dropped to sixth place in Africa, falling out of the continent’s prime 5. The brand new rankings place Morocco (twelfth), Senegal (nineteenth), Egypt (thirty second), Algeria (thirty sixth), and Côte d’Ivoire (forty first) forward of the Tremendous Eagles.
Is This Only a Non permanent Setback?
Rankings are based mostly on outcomes, and whereas Nigeria’s latest type hasn’t been dangerous—two wins and two attracts of their final 4 matches—their failure to safe convincing wins in opposition to lower-ranked groups has affected their place.
In the meantime, Côte d’Ivoire’s AFCON victory helped them climb larger, whereas Morocco and Senegal proceed to carry out properly on the worldwide stage.
Though the Tremendous Eagles did properly within the 2025 AFCON qualifiers, their 2026 World Cup qualifying marketing campaign has been disappointing.
Issues Inside the NFF
One main situation affecting Nigeria is the dearth of stability in teaching. In simply two years, the Tremendous Eagles have had 4 completely different coaches.
The Nigerian Soccer Federation (NFF) has struggled with key appointments, leaving the workforce with out clear course. In distinction, Morocco and Senegal have caught with long-term teaching initiatives—and they’re benefiting from it.
One other drawback is Nigeria’s reliance on skilled gamers with out correctly getting ready youthful skills. With no stable plan for the long run, the Tremendous Eagles threat dropping their dominance in African soccer.
Can Nigeria Bounce Again?
Regardless of the rating drop, Nigeria nonetheless has a powerful squad that includes Victor Osimhen, Victor Boniface, Wilfred Ndidi, and lots of others. Nevertheless, expertise alone shouldn’t be sufficient.
For the Tremendous Eagles to return to the highest, the NFF should take motion by making certain teaching stability and prioritising youth growth.
With the 2026 World Cup qualifiers and AFCON tournaments forward, Nigeria should study from this setback and make the suitable selections. In the event that they do, the Tremendous Eagles can rise once more.
