2026 WC Qualifiers: NFF To Decide Chelle’s Future, Says NSC Chair Dikko

The Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), Shehu Dikko, has clarified that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will decide the fate of Super Eagles’ head coach, Eric Chelle, amid mounting criticism over the Super Eagles’ stuttering 2026 World Cup qualification campaign

Speaking on Channels Television’s ‘The Morning Brief’ on Monday, Dikko stressed that the NSC’s role is limited to providing support while the football federation holds the authority to evaluate Chelle’s performance.

“Eric Chelle is the responsibility of the Nigeria Football Federation to decide. At the end of the day, after they finish, they’ll do the analysis, and then they will recommend to us, and then we look at it, we approve or disapprove, or we engage to do that,” Dikko explained.

While acknowledging Nigeria’s precarious position in the qualifiers, Dikko insisted that Chelle had managed to stabilizs the team since his appointment in January 2025.

“As for the World Cup, we all know where we are. When we came on board, we only had three points out of 12, but now we have been able to, at least with Eric Chelle, the NFF, pull ourselves together. Now, we have eight points in another four games. If we had gotten these results before, probably, we could have been preparing to qualify for the World Cup,” he noted.

LEADERSHIP reports that Nigeria currently sits third in Group C with 11 points, six points adrift of leaders South Africa (17 points) and three behind Benin. With only two matches left, the Super Eagles’ qualification hopes are slim after a disappointing 1-1 draw with South Africa in Bloemfontein on September 9, where an own goal by captain William Troost-Ekong and an equaliser from Calvin Bassey dashed Nigeria’s chances of securing maximum points.

Dikko admitted that Nigeria’s fate was no longer in its own hands but urged optimism.

“Based on the numbers, it’s out of our hands. So we just have to win our next two games and see what happens because it’s football; somebody has to lose for you to qualify. So, we have to win our next two games and see where it takes us. But we are still hopeful. Anything can happen,” he said.

He also highlighted the NSC’s commitment to backing the national team, “As a commission, we did all we had to do to support. For the last game we played, the National Sports Commission chartered a flight, paid for hotels, and made the bonuses available.”

Meanwhile, frustration continues to mount in football circles. Former Super Eagles captain John Mikel Obi called for sweeping changes at the NFF if Nigeria fails to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

“If Nigeria doesn’t qualify for the World Cup, the entire NFF board has to go… It’s unacceptable,” Mikel declared on his Obi One Podcast.

Nigeria will face Lesotho on October 8 before rounding off their qualifiers against Benin Republic on October 11.