The Super Eagles will not be at the 2026 World Cup after falling short in their qualification journey, but the Mundial will still be graced by the spectacle of Nigerian talents, Soccernet.ng reports.
The diversity of the Nigerian culture has been spread across the World since the 90's, and several footballers who were born to Nigerian parents or migrated abroad when they were younger have built a core part of the Super Eagles in recent years.
Players like Victor Moses, Alex Iwobi, Calvin Bassey, Semi Ajayi and Ademola Lookman have been crucial members of the Nigerian team over the past decade, although they could've represented other nations.
Still, some other players decided against playing for the Green and Whites, although they fully embrace that a part of them belongs to Nigeria. Ahead of the World Cup opener on Thursday, Soccernet.ng unveils Nigeria's 2026 FIFA World Cup Diaspora starting lineup.
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Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup Diaspora XI
Using a 4-2-3-1 formation, we have:
1. Owen Goodman – GK [Canada, Crystal Palace]
The 22-year-old spent the just-concluded season with Sky Bet League One side, keeping five clean sheets from 32 games.
Goodman was born in London to an English Father and a Nigerian Mother, but moved to Canada with his parents when he was five, where he transitioned from being a defender to being a goalkeeper.
He eventually returned to the UK in 2013, joining Crystal Palace's academy, and he's still at the club to date, although he has yet to make an appearance for the first team.
Goodman represented England at Youth level, declining Nigeria U-20's call in January 2023. In 2025, again, he declined Nigeria's call while pursuing Canadian citizenship, and the process was complete in October.
He's yet to play for the Canadian National team.
2. Manuel Akanji – RB [Switzerland, Inter Milan]
The former Borussia Dortmund centre-back was born in Switzerland to a Swiss mother (Isabel, a former tennis player) and a Nigerian father (Abimbola, a financial expert).
While he was born and raised in Switzerland, Akanji chose to represent the Swiss national team, but has always embraced his Nigerian heritage, even tattooing an eagle on his arm as a tribute to the Super Eagles.
He's gone to accrue 81 caps for Switzerland, and will be playing his third World Cup tournament with them in the USA.
3. Ime Okon – CB [ South Africa, Hannover 96]
Okon was born in Johannesburg to a Nigerian father and a South African mother.
The 22-year-old has often expressed his pride at playing for the Bafana Bafana, and will definitely be playing in Bafana Bafana's first World Cup outing since they hosted the 2010 edition.
4. David Alaba – CB [Austria, Real Madrid]
Having been captain of the Austrian national team, David Alaba is set to make his World Cup debut when the European side opens their Mundial campaign against Jordan next Wednesday.
The 33-year-old was born in Vienna to George and Gina Alaba and has one sister, a professional recording artist named Rose May Alaba, who's been to Nigeria on several occasions, even gracing the South West derby between Sporting Lagos and Remo Stars with her presence.
Alaba's father is from Ogere, near Abeokuta in Ogun State, Nigeria, while his mother is from the Philippines.
The former Bayern Munich man has visited Nigeria in the past, and he helped in building community toilets in the vicinity his Father grew up.
5. Bukayo Saka – LB [England, Arsenal]
Bukayo Ayoyinka Saka was born to Nigerian parents in London, and broke into the Arsenal team in the 2019/2020 season, filling in at left-back after Sead Kolašinac and Kieran Tierney suffered injuries.
Saka debuted for England in 2020 and has gone on to feature at two EURO tournaments. Now a Premier League winner, the Arsenal winger will be crucial to England's World Cup campaign.
6. Carney Chukwuemeka – CM [Austria, Borussia Dortmund]
Like David Alaba, Chukwuemeka was born in Vienna, to Nigerian parents, although he spent a lot of his childhood in England.
After playing for the Three Lions across several tiers of their youth setup, Chukwuemeka's international allegiance was sealed during the March International break, where he announced he'd be representing Austria.
He's gone on to play every game for Ralf Rangnick's side since then.
7. Felix Nmecha – CM [Germany, Borussia Dortmund]
Born in Germany to a German mother and an Igbo-Nigerian father, Nmecha and his elder brother, Lukas, played for England's youth side before committing their future to Julian Nagelsmann's side.
However, only Lukas was called up by the former RB Leipzig manager for Germany's World Cup squad.
8. Michael Olise – RW [France, Bayern Munich]
Olise, like Bukayo Saka, was born in London to a British-Nigerian father and a Franco-Algerian mother, making him eligible to represent all four nations.
After representing the French team at the 2024 Olympics, there were no questions left on his mind regarding his International future.
Across all competitions for Bayern Munich in the just-concluded season, Olise scored 25 goals and 28 assists, making him a front-runner in Les Bleus' 2026 FIFA World Cup squad.
9. Jamal Musiala – AM [Germany, Bayern Munich]
Musiala was born in Stuttgart, Germany, to his Nigerian-British father, Daniel Richard and German mother with Polish roots, Carolin Musiala.
Due to the multiple nationalities of his parents, Musiala was eligible to play for several countries. He played for England's youth team before switching to Germany in 2021.
Four years ago in Qatar, the Bayern Munich midfielder recorded the most dribbles by a teenager in a single World Cup match since 1966 (12).
10. Eberechi Eze – LW [England, Arsenal]
After winning the FA Cup with Crystal Palace in 2025, the 27-year-old won the English Premier League with Arsenal the following season.
Of all the players on this list, Eze came closest to becoming a Super Eagle. He's trained with the Nigerian National team, and was frequently contacted by former NFF Chairman Amaju Pinnick and former coach Gernot Rohr.
Super Eagles defender Bright Osayi-Samuel also revealed Eze asked him what the atmosphere in Nigeria's camp looked like before he committed his future to England.
That decision saw him claim a spot in Thomas Tuchel's World Cup squad.
11. Tani Oluwaseyi [Canada, CF Villareal]
Oluwaseyi was born in Abuja, Nigeria, but moved to Canada at age 10. He began his career with MLS side Minnesota United before making the big move to Villarreal last year.
For the 26-year-old, representing Nigeria never came into question, so Canada was a relatively easy choice to make.
