The Federal Government has confirmed that the Super Eagles’ match bonuses for the ongoing 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) have cleared all regulatory hurdles.
In a statement on Thursday, Minister of State for Finance Doris Uzoka-Anite said the payments would start reflecting in the players’ domiciliary accounts “today or tomorrow.”
This assurance follows reports that the team had threatened to boycott travel to Marrakesh for their quarter-final match against Algeria on Saturday due to unpaid allowances. The squad is scheduled to travel from Fez to Marrakesh, about five hours away, on Thursday.
The Eagles have yet to receive bonuses for all four matches played so far in the tournament. Previously, in November 2024, the team also boycotted training during the African World Cup playoffs over unpaid allowances, leading to Nigeria’s loss to
DR Congo and elimination from the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
Uzoka-Anite explained that the delay was caused by the process of converting funds into foreign currency, which players preferred. She noted that this procedure has now been fast-tracked, and the final transfers to the players’ accounts are underway.
“The Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria have streamlined the foreign exchange processing to ensure our players are rewarded without further delay. Going forward, the process will be fully streamlined to allow faster and more predictable disbursements in line with international best practices,” she said.
Earlier, National Sports Commission Chairman Shehu Dikko confirmed that all financial entitlements of the players and officials have been settled. He added that President Bola Tinubu approved the AFCON 2025 budget in November 2025, aligning the NSC, the Nigeria Football Federation, and the players.
“Approval and processing are different stages, but the funds have been approved and are being released,” Dikko emphasized.
The Super Eagles, who have won all four of their matches so far and lead the tournament in goals scored with 12, finished top of Group C and defeated Mozambique 4–0 in the round of 16. The winner of Saturday’s Nigeria vs Algeria match will advance to face either Morocco or Cameroon in the semi-final.