Nigeria’s hopes of competing on the 2025 CAF U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco have been shattered, because the Confederation of African Soccer (CAF) confirmed that the Golden Eaglets haven’t certified.
The five-time world champions, who’ve made a document ten appearances on the match, have been hoping to increase their legacy however didn’t safe a spot within the qualifiers.
Manu Garba’s crew completed third on the WAFU B U17 Championship final yr, profitable bronze after a 3-2 victory over Ghana. Nonetheless, solely the highest two groups from the regional match earned automated qualification, leaving Nigeria out of rivalry.
In current weeks, there was hope that the Eaglets may nonetheless qualify if CAF determined to broaden the match to 16 groups, following FIFA’s resolution to extend Africa’s U17 World Cup slots to 10 for the 2025 FIFA U17 World Cup in Qatar. Many believed CAF would regulate its qualification course of to permit extra African groups to take part.
Nonetheless, CAF confirmed on Monday that the U17 AFCON will stay a 12-team competitors, dashing Nigeria’s final likelihood of qualification.
This resolution means solely the best-performing nations from the regional qualifiers will compete in Morocco, and regardless of Nigeria’s wealthy historical past in youth soccer, the Golden Eaglets is not going to be amongst them.
The 2025 U17 AFCON, scheduled to happen from March 30 to April 19, will function the pathway for groups aiming to qualify for the U17 World Cup in Qatar later that yr. The match draw is predicted to be held later this month.
