With Super Falcons win, Super Eagles will qualify for 2026 World Cup - NFF President sees inspiration from Mission X

Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President Ibrahim Gusau has reiterated that the Super Falcons' win has ignited the Super Eagles' World Cup ambition.

Following the Super Falcons’ sensational comeback victory over Morocco in the final of the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), Gusau has expressed confidence that the win will fuel the men’s national team as they fight to resurrect their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign.

Trailing 2-0 in a tense final at the Olympic Stadium in Rabat, the Super Falcons scored three goals to complete one of the most dramatic comebacks in the competition’s history.

Gusau, visibly emotional after the match, hailed the victory as symbolic of the Nigerian spirit.

“Our girls rose from the ‘dead’, as they say, and fought to victory. This was an extraordinary performance. I congratulate them for their resilience, doggedness, patriotism, and the blatant display of the well-known Nigerian spirit,” Gusau told thenff.com.

Nigeria sits outside the qualification spots with four matches left, but Gusau is hopeful the Falcons’ example can trigger a mindset shift among the men.

He added, “This victory will have positive implications for the men in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying series. Watching the Super Falcons tonight underscores again the wise saying that in sport and in life, it is never over until it is over.”

The Super Eagles resume their World Cup qualifying campaign with a home game against Rwanda’s Amavubi on Saturday, September 6, at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo.

Just three days later, Eric Chelle’s side will travel to Bloemfontein for a high-stakes clash against South Africa’s Bafana Bafana on Tuesday, September 9, a fixture that could define Nigeria’s qualification hopes.