The President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Gusau, and several members of the federation’s executive committee have resigned amid growing concerns over the management of Nigerian football.
The development follows mounting pressure on the NFF leadership after a series of setbacks, including Nigeria’s historic failure to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The NFF board has also come under scrutiny from security agencies over the management of funds released by the Federal Government for the national teams.
The Department of State Services (DSS) is reportedly examining the utilisation of the N17 billion intervention fund approved by President Bola Tinubu in 2024 to clear outstanding wages, bonuses and other payments owed to players and officials of Nigeria’s national teams.
A source said the DSS had requested documents relating to the funds to establish how they were utilised, describing the exercise as a routine investigation rather than a witch-hunt.
The probe comes against the backdrop of growing public criticism of the administration of Nigerian football, with the Super Eagles missing successive FIFA World Cups and the Super Falcons suffering the unprecedented setback of failing to qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
The Falcons’ campaign suffered a major blow after they lost 1-0 to Cameroon in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations. Their subsequent World Cup qualification hopes ended after a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in the playoff.
Nigeria had previously qualified for every edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup since the tournament began in 1991.
The pressure on the NFF leadership intensified following the resignation of more than half of the 13-member executive committee. Eight members are now reportedly to have resigned, raising questions over the fate of the federation’s scheduled September 27 elections in Lafia, Nasarawa State.