During the commissioning of the Gwagwalada–Kuje Road project on Wednesday, June 24, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike voiced his disappointment over Nigeria's failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, addressing former Super Eagles captain Joseph Yobo, who was among the dignitaries present.
Wike's frank message to Yobo
Wike stated that despite Nigeria's rich football history and the numerous Nigerian-heritage players featuring in the World Cup, the absence of the national team is hard to accept. He said, “Yes, we have congratulated one of our stars, Joseph Yobo. But let me use this medium through you to tell the Super Eagles: we are not happy. If nobody else will tell you that, because I saw people clapping for you the moment they saw the Super Eagles, I said, ‘I won’t clap.’ I won’t clap because I watch the World Cup. I see countries I have never heard of before qualifying to play in the World Cup, and I am sitting down for hours watching countries that are completely unknown. In this contest, we have no less than 13 top Nigerian players playing all over the world, but here we are; we did not qualify. Yobo, go and tell them. We are not happy.”
Nigeria's failed World Cup campaign
Nigeria's national team failed to reach a second consecutive World Cup after losing to DR Congo in the African playoff tournament last year. The Super Eagles, who first featured in the tournament in 1994, had reached the playoffs after missing out on an automatic qualification spot despite a 4–0 win over Benin Republic in their final qualifier. Nigeria later advanced to the African playoffs as one of the best runners-up, defeating Gabon in their opening match before losing on penalties to DR Congo. The Congolese side went on to represent Africa in the intercontinental playoffs, where they secured one of the final two qualification spots for the tournament.
