AFCON
IT’S A TWIN ANNIVERSARY FOR ODEGBAMI
BY KUNLE SOLAJA
This Friday 30 October is a twin anniversary for the excellent career of Segun Odegbami, who is easily the fastest striker Nigeria ever produced.
It is exactly 44 years this October 30 when the leggy striker scored the first of his 21 goals for Nigeria. It was in a World Cup qualifier against Sierra Leone at the National Stadium, Lagos.
Odegbami opened scoring in the 6-2 rout of Sierra Leone and offered assists in two other goals in the match that also marked the end of international career of his club mate and the then best left winger for Africa, Kunle Awesu.
It was the 30 October 1976 match that established Odegbami as the undisputed lead striker for Nigeria and his domineering presence in the Nigeria strike force endured for exactly the next five years.
Since his going in as a substitute for Baba Otu Mohammed in the first leg match (played on 16 October 1976), there was never a time Odegbami was in camp without tasting action.
He was to play 42 more matches for the national team which he later captained. In an irony of fate, the same 30 October marks the last time the legendary striker played for Nigeria.
Incidentally, it was also a World Cup qualifying match, this time in Constantine, Algeria in 1981. In his 43 appearances for Nigeria, he scored 21 goals which remains one of the best average for any Nigerian international till date.
It is surpassed only by that of his later date club-mate in the then IICC Shooting Stars, Rashidi Yekini, who scored 37 goals in 60 appearances for Nigeria.
As glorious as Segun Odegbami’s football career was, he sadly did not have adequate playing time to exhibit his skills at global level and out of the continent’s shores, at least, at grade A match level.
He was only able to play for 45 minutes in the 1980 Olympic Games duel with eventual champions; Czechoslovakia in a match Nigeria drew 1-1. He wore the unfamiliar jersey number 13 and was replaced a minute into the second half by Raccah Rovers’ Shefiu Mohammed.
On three other instances, he was close to playing at global level, but failed. The first instance would have been at the Montreal 1976 Olympics where he was set to blossom before the politically motivated boycott aborted the dream of the then Green Eagles who were believed to be in their best elements, judging from their pre tournament form and the 4-0 defeat of hosts, Canada in a friendly match.
Incidentally, it was the same Montreal Olympics that France’ Michel Platini made his international debut.
Other global figures that used the Montreal Games as springboard of international career are Spanish goalkeeper, Luis Arconada and Mexico’s Hugo Sanchez.
Odegbami’s second miss of featuring at the world level was the agonizing missing of Nigeria from the Argentina 1978 World Cup when an Odegbami inspired Green Eagles suddenly failed at home in their final duel with Tunisia.
No thanks to the famed own goal scored by a hitherto reliable defender, Godwin Odiye. Failure to qualify for Spain ’82 at the last hurdle marked the end of the international career of Odegbami.
Even today, at 68, Odegbami remains as relevant on Nigeria football issues as he was 39 years ago which was almost the age he hung his boots when he played his last competitive match against Zamalek of Egypt in December 1984?
His voice cannot be ignored in any discussion of football matters, be it technical, political or point-blankly, administrative.
He had made several attempts to join the class of Michel Platini and Franz Beckenbauer in transiting from the pitch to the board room.
The athletic figure of Segun Odegbami, one of Nigeria’s greatest sportsmen of all time is unmistaken. Slim, tall and often wavering as he towerly takes pacy steps Odegbami remains an icon.
Perhaps, nothing physical has changed much in him when compared with his active playing days in the mid 1970s up to the same period in the 80s.
The only sign of aging is perhaps the thinning hairs which make him wear a clean shaven head. He has however been constantly visible in sports scenes, even years after his football career ended.
The inimitable sports commentator, Ernest Okonkwo, nicknamed him “Mathematical” for his wonderful acceleration and precision crosses from the right flank.
Standing at 1.8 metres with a leggy stature and looking very lanky, he could not have been anybody’s idea of a perfect striker in those days.
Just few notable Nigerian strikers before him had that almost fragile stature. But he rose to be acknowledged as a continental soccer icon. What impact did his tall physique had not his skill?
“They used to call me sluggish striker”‘ he said while recalling his humble beginning as a club player in Ibadan, where he attended The Polytechnic, Ibadan and featured for Housing Corporation before his skills attracted attention from the bigger IICC Shooting Stars in 1974.
At the time, he was an inside left player often in jersey number 10 and a support striker playing behind the thunderbolt-shot gifted Moses Otolorin.
Truly, on account of his stature, just like that of the later-day Nwankwo Kanu, he would need space to get perfect control of the ball.
But the tip-tap football that the Shooting Stars were noted for at the time, as opposed to that of kick and rush of Enugu Rangers, seemed okay for the sluggish offensive.
At least that was good enough for him for his skills to be noted when as a member of the Western State team to the inaugural National Sports Festival in 1973, he was invited to the national team under German coach, Othman Calder, in 1974.
He was merely like a snake that moved on rocks without leaving a mark. It would take another 48 months for Odegbami to get to national prominence.
On account of academic pursuit, he agonizingly missed the final match of the 1975 Challenge when IICC Shooting Stars lost 1-0 to Enugu Rangers.
Transformation to speedy striker
Segun Odegbami will also point to any inquisitive journalist that the match against Sierra Leone was the turning point in his international career.
According to Odegbami, who was on the reserve bench in the first leg match in Freetown, the plan of the coach was to bring him in as a substitute for Solomon Oriakhi.
But the plans changed following the drop in form of Baba Otu Mohammed who was featuring on the right wing.
Odegbami was brought in the 42nd minute to replace him and he was quite impressive. “During the training sessions for the return leg, Coach Father Tiko discovered I could be effective on the right wing.
“He instructed me to practice running down the flank and then pulled out towards the goal. I did this several times during the training sessions and it proved effective in the match”, remarked Odegbami.
He did not just opened scoring in the 25th minute of the match, his other crosses after leaving the left rear guards of the Sierra Leoneans stranded led to Aloysius Atuegbu scoring a brace and Kelechi Emeteole scoring another goal.
For the records, the opening goal was the first of Odegbami’s 21 international goals.
From that moment, he became the speedy right-winger whose effectiveness for both the national team as well as his club, the Shooting Stars, remains unrivalled till today.
Of his goals in international matches, Odegbami rates the goal he scored in Bouake against Côte d’Ivoire in a July 27, 1977 World Cup qualifier as his best.
The goal was the first for Nigeria in a 2-2 draw as the Green Eagles rallied from two goal deficits.
Left winger, Adokiye Amiesimaka levelled up for Nigeria almost in the same fashion that Odegbami scored the first goal.
At the club level, Odegbami rated the goal he scored for Shooting Stars against Maghreb Fez of Morocco in the 1-1 drawn quarter-finals of the 1984 Africa Cup of Champions Clubs as his best.
Shooting Stars won the return leg 4-1 in Ibadan to advance 5-2 on aggregate. Years ago, recalling some of the memorable moments he had in his playing days, Odegbami spoke of the odd timing of the 1977 Challenge Cup final match of IICC Shooting Stars and the defunct Raccah Rovers of Kano that was played Sunday morning to enable Nigeria beat the CAF deadline for registration for the 1978 Africa Cup Winners competition.
Shooting Stars won the ill-tempered match 1-0 from an Odegbami’s goal which Rovers’ officials were to contest much later after match had restarted.
Rovers’ players later walked off the pitch.
According to Odegbami, he was mobbed by admirers who stripped him almost to his under wears as team inched its way back to a hotel in Sam Shonibare Street, Surulere where it lodged.
Odegbami’s 21 goals for Nigeria
- Oct.30, 1976 – World Cup qualifier- Nigeria 6-2 Sierra Leone – 1 goal
- March 26, 1977 – Afcon qualifier- Nigeria 2-0 Sierra Leone – 2 goals
- June 25, 1977 – Afcon qualifier Nigeria 3-0 Senegal – 1 goal
- July 27, 1977 – World Cup qualifier – Nigeria 2-2 Cote d’Ivoire –1 goal
- August 27, 1977 – ECOWAS Games- Nigeria 2-0 Sierra Leone – 2 goals
- October 8, 1977 – World Cup qualifier- Nigeria 4-0 Egypt –2 goals
- Jan 14, 1978 – All Africa Games qualifier – Nigeria 7-0 Benin – 3 goals
- 17, 1978 – All Africa Games qualifier – Nigeria 2-0 Benin – 1 goal
- March 5, 1978 – Africa Cup of Nations – Nigeria 4-2 B/Faso – 2 goals
- March 8, 1978 – Africa Cup of Nations – Nigeria 1-1 Ghana – 1 goal
- 4, 1979 – Friendly- Nigeria 5-0 Benin – 1 goal
- January 26, 1980 – Friendly Nigeria 1-0 Liberia – 1 goal
- March 8, 1980 – Africa Cup of Nations- Nigeria 3-1 Tanzania – 1 goal
- March 22, 1980 – Africa Cup of Nations Nigeria 3-0 Algeria – 2 goals
By Kunle Solaja.
Nigeria’s senior national team, the Super Eagles, will discover their route to the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations when the Confederation of African Football (Confederation of African Football) conducts the qualifying draw on May 19, 2026.
This is an exercise that will define the country’s pathway to the historic PAMOJA 2027 tournament.
The draw, coming after the conclusion of the preliminary round, will feature 48 teams, including co-hosts Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. They will be pooled into 12 groups of four teams each. Only the top two teams from each group will progress to the final tournament, setting up what promises to be a fiercely competitive qualification series.
For Nigeria, a three-time African champion and podium finisher in three of the last four editions, the qualification format is familiar, but the stakes are evolving. They will need a good head start to avert the type of tragedy that defined their World Cup 2026 qualification campaign.
The Super Eagles have maintained a strong record in AFCON qualifying campaigns in recent years, yet inconsistency at the tournament proper has raised expectations for not just qualification, but a deeper continental impact.
The six-match qualification series will be spread across three FIFA international windows:
- * September–October 2026 (Matchdays 1 & 2)
- * November 2026 (Matchdays 3 & 4)
- * March 2027 (Matchdays 5 & 6)
This staggered schedule will test squad depth, technical stability, and administrative efficiency, which are areas that have historically influenced Nigeria’s performance as much as on-field quality.
East Africa Return and Logistical Implications
The 2027 tournament will mark AFCON’s return to the East African region for the first time since the 1976 Africa Cup of Nations.
For Nigeria, this introduces a different competitive environment—altitude variations, travel logistics across three host nations, and potentially unfamiliar playing conditions.
The tri-nation hosting model also means that teams must prepare for a geographically dispersed tournament, requiring early planning in scouting, acclimatisation, and logistics—areas where Nigeria has previously faced challenges in major competitions.
CAF is banking on the momentum generated by recent tournaments such as the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, both of which recorded significant commercial growth, increased sponsorship value, and expanded global broadcast audiences.
For Nigeria, one of Africa’s most marketable football brands, this growth presents both opportunity and pressure. Strong performances by the Super Eagles not only boost national pride but also reinforce Nigeria’s commercial relevance in African football’s evolving ecosystem.
While the May 19 draw will simply allocate opponents on paper, its implications run deeper. A favourable group could ease Nigeria’s passage, but recent AFCON qualifiers have shown that traditional hierarchies are narrowing, with emerging teams increasingly competitive.
For the Super Eagles, the road to PAMOJA 2027 is not just about qualification—it is about reasserting continental dominance in an era where African football is becoming more competitive, more commercial, and more globally visible.
The journey begins with the draw, but for Nigeria, expectations will stretch far beyond simply making the trip to East Africa.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
By Kunle Solaja.
The Confederation of African Football (Confederation of African Football) has formally unveiled the competition window for the landmark Africa Cup of Nations, tagged PAMOJA 2027, setting the stage for what is shaping up to be one of the most politically and structurally significant tournaments in the competition’s history.
Scheduled to kick off on Saturday, 19 June 2027, with the final fixed for Saturday, 17 July 2027, the tournament marks only the second time the AFCON will be staged in the June–July window. The first was the expanded 24-team edition in the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, a shift originally designed to align African football with the European off-season calendar and improve player availability.
A Return to June–July: Progress or Persistent Constraint?
While the timing suggests continuity with the 2019 precedent, it also underscores a deeper tension within African football governance. CAF’s confirmation that the dates required approval from the FIFA Council, following a meeting in Vancouver, raises renewed questions about the confederation’s operational autonomy.
Historically, AFCON scheduling has been vulnerable to external pressures, particularly from European clubs and leagues reluctant to release African players mid-season. The June–July calendar was initially seen as a strategic compromise. However, the necessity of FIFA ratification in 2027 signals that CAF’s flagship tournament still operates within a framework heavily influenced by global football politics.
This development may reignite debate about whether CAF is charting an independent course or increasingly aligning its decisions with FIFA’s broader international calendar priorities.
Beyond scheduling, AFCON 2027 represents a structural leap. For the first time, three nations—Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda—will jointly host the tournament.
This tri-nation model, branded “PAMOJA” (Swahili for togetherness), is more than symbolic. It reflects CAF’s attempt to decentralise hosting rights, reduce infrastructural pressure on single nations, and expand the tournament’s commercial and cultural footprint.
With a projected reach of over 400 million people across East Africa, the tournament offers significant opportunities:
- Market expansion: Opening new commercial corridors in a region historically underrepresented in hosting major football events.
- Infrastructure development: Accelerated investment in stadiums, transport, and tourism across three countries.
- Regional integration: Football as a tool for political and economic cooperation within East Africa.
Yet, the model is not without risks. Multi-country hosting introduces logistical complexities—border coordination, security harmonisation, and infrastructure parity—that CAF has not previously managed at this scale.
Waiting for Key Decisions
CAF has deferred the announcement of which cities or countries will host the opening match and final, decisions that will carry both symbolic and economic weight. These choices could influence regional balance and perceptions of equity among the co-hosts.
AFCON 2027 sits at the intersection of ambition and dependency. On one hand, it embodies innovation—a new hosting model and a reaffirmed global calendar alignment. On the other, it highlights lingering structural challenges, particularly CAF’s reliance on FIFA’s approval mechanisms.
As preparations unfold, the success of PAMOJA 2027 will likely be judged not just by the quality of football on display, but by how effectively CAF navigates these competing forces—continental aspiration versus global integration.
In many ways, AFCON 2027 will be a test of whether African football can expand its horizons without compromising its independence.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
By Kunle Solaja.
Defending champions Morocco will take the first formal step in their title defence when the Confederation of African Football (CAF) conducts the draw for the AFCON PAMOJA 2027 qualifiers on May 19, 2026, two days before the 122nd anniversary of the founding of FIFA.
Fresh from their triumph at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, the Atlas Lions now face the challenge of sustaining continental dominance as they begin the journey toward the historic East African finals, to be co-hosted by Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
As reigning champions, Morocco enter the qualifiers with a target on their back. Their recent rise, bolstered by strong World Cup performances and a deep pool of Europe-based talents, has elevated expectations both at home and across the continent.
But history suggests that defending an AFCON title is rarely straightforward. The qualifying format, which includes 48 teams drawn into 12 groups of four, leaves little margin for complacency. Only the top two teams in each group will progress, meaning even established powers must navigate a potentially tricky six-match campaign.
The qualifiers will unfold across three FIFA international windows:
- * September–October 2026 (Matchdays 1 & 2)
- * November 2026 (Matchdays 3 & 4)
- * March 2027 (Matchdays 5 & 6)
For Morocco, maintaining squad cohesion across these windows will be crucial. With players spread across Europe’s top leagues, managing fatigue, travel, and club-country balance will test the technical crew’s planning and depth.
AFCON 2027 will mark the tournament’s return to East Africa for the first time since the 1976 Africa Cup of Nations. The unique three-country hosting model introduces new logistical variables—ranging from climate and altitude differences to travel across multiple venues.
For Morocco, whose recent success has been built on tactical discipline and structured preparation, early adaptation to these conditions could prove decisive in their title defence.
CAF’s recent tournaments—including the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and Morocco 2025—have recorded unprecedented commercial success, expanding the global reach of African football.
As defending champions, Morocco stand at the centre of this growth. Their performances will not only shape the competitive narrative of AFCON 2027 but also influence the tournament’s commercial appeal and global visibility.
While the May 19 draw will determine Morocco’s immediate opponents, the broader mission is clear: retain continental supremacy in an increasingly competitive African football landscape.
For the Atlas Lions, the road to PAMOJA 2027 is not merely about securing qualification—it is about proving that their recent triumph was not a peak, but the beginning of sustained dominance.
Join the Sports Village Square channel on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vaz7mEIGk1FxU8YIXb0H
US drops bond requirement for World Cup ticket holders
New Jersey cuts World Cup rail ticket prices again
White House: No visa issues for Iraq’s World Cup team
Breaking! Uzoho suspended from Super Eagles’ next match with Sierra Leone
No longer Super League as CAF changes name of its new clubs competition
NIGERIAN FOOTBALL CHIEF EXECUTIVE, SANUSI CHARGES NIGERIAN COACHES TO BE UPRIGHT, DILIGENT
- World Cup5 days ago
FIFA Plans Three Opening Ceremonies in All Host Nations for 2026 World Cup
- World Cup4 days ago
United States Unveils Hollywood-Style FIFA World Cup 2026 Opening Ceremony
- World Cup5 days ago
Mexico president wavers on plan to cut school year by 40 days for the World Cup
- World Cup6 days ago
Burna Boy Joins Shakira for Official 2026 World Cup Song ‘Dai Dai’
- World Cup1 week ago
Despite 2026 Absence, Nigeria Still Leads Africa’s World Cup Winners’ Chart
- Premier League5 days ago
Man United’s Fernandes and City’s Shaw win FWA Footballer of the Year awards
- Nigerian Football5 days ago
Sporting Lagos Crowned 2026 NNL Champions After Dramatic Super Four Finale
- Premier League3 days ago
Arsenal survive huge scare to edge towards title