Nigeria snubbed as CAF appoints 73 match officials for 2025 AFCON

Nigeria will have no representation among match officials at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) released its approved list for the tournament in Morocco, Soccernet.ng reports.

The announcement confirms growing concerns within Nigerian football circles over the country’s declining influence in continental refereeing, despite remaining one of Africa’s dominant forces on the pitch.

CAF on Wednesday unveiled 73 officials made up of 28 referees, 31 assistant referees and 14 video assistant referees (VAR).

The selections were drawn from across the continent, including Benin, Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Senegal. Notably, Nigeria a three-time African champion, is the only former AFCON-winning nation in West Africa without a named referee.

AFCON 2025 will run from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026, the second consecutive edition to take place in the winter calendar. All selected officials are expected to arrive in Morocco on 15 December for an intensive preparatory camp covering physical drills, technical sessions and theoretical assessments led by CAF’s Referees Department.

CAF says the appointments reflect the governing body's commitment to ‘refereeing excellence' and the continuous improvement of African match officiating standards. Several of the chosen officials have overseen major CAF competitions in recent years, reinforcing a strategy that prioritises consistency, technical upgrades and tournament integrity.

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Nigeria: Super Eagles focused on their own objectives

Despite the referee omission, Nigeria’s ambitions on the pitch remain unchanged.

The Super Eagles, finalists in the last edition where they narrowly lost to hosts Côte d’Ivoire, will arrive in Morocco among the favourites for the title.

Head coach Eric Chelle is targeting one step better than the silver medal secured in Abidjan. Victory in Morocco would make him the first non-Nigerian African manager to lead Nigeria to AFCON glory, a rare honour in the nation’s football history.

Nigeria last lifted the AFCON trophy in 2013 under the late Stephen Keshi, who became the first indigenous coach to guide the team to the continental crown. Before that, Clemens Westerhof famously masterminded Nigeria’s triumph on North African soil in 1994, defeating Zambia in the final.

With a strong player pool and clear competitive intent, Chelle’s squad will look to put aside the disappointment of the country's absence on the officiating front and focus instead on reclaiming African football’s biggest prize.