Each player in the Super Eagles will receive a ‘special bonus’ for each match the Nigerian team plays at the forthcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs on both the African and intercontinental levels, Sports247 reports.
This is sequel to a bold declaration by National Sports Commission (NSC) chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, who stated that each match at Africa’s four-nation qualification play-off, scheduled to begin on November 13th in Rabat, Morocco, will be taken as a Cup Final.
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While also projecting towards the six-nation intercontinental level billed for March 2026 in Mexico, Dikko affirmed that the Super Eagles should be ready to play three crunch matches that would determine their fate of being at next year’s World Cup.
He acknowledged that it is a long and tough route to follow in the World Cup qualifiers, hence the NSC’s resolve towards motivating the players in the best way possible.
Dikko expatiated, “We now have three games to plan for – two in Africa and one at the intercontinental stage. For us, every game is a final. We have to focus on playing three finals … two of which will be this month of November and one in March next year.
“So, we have to prepare for the three matches the way teams plan for a final. We have to invite the players, discuss with them, and give them the best bonus they can get. It has to be a bonus that is different from what they get for normal matches that we give them.”
Aside from the financial incentive that is being arranged to boost the players’ morale, Dikko also disclosed that all aspects of logistics, linking up with officials of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and interactions with the players are already ongoing, in order to ensure that the Eagles make it to USA/Canada/Mexico 2026.
“We have to pay them a special bonus for getting to the final and provide all necessary logistics. We all have to be focused. Everybody has to be focused. So, every day, we are working together, meeting with the NFF and calling the players. While working together to make sure everybody is focused, we believe we can qualify,” Dikko enthused.
He concluded by noting the role that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and all Nigerian football fans will also have to play in ensuring the qualification quest becomes a reality, even as he equally charged the players to rise to the occasion when the chips finally come down next week in The Atlas Nation.
Dikko submitted: “With the support of Mr. President and Nigerians, and with the players all playing their part, we will be able to deliver the World Cup ticket.”
Sports247 gathered that the Eagles will first play Gabon next week Thursday in the first semi-final of the African play-off, from which a win will take them into the final on November 16th against either Cameroon or Democratic Republic of Congo.
Winning that game would ensure Nigeria plays only one match at the intercontinental play-offs scheduled for Mexico in March 2026, as the Eagles would be the highest ranked team among all the six qualifiers.
This means Nigeria will skip the semi-finals and go straight into one of the two finals, from which the winners of each game would eventually qualify for next year’s Mundial.
