Amun Leads 6-man NFF Panel To Investigate Nigeria’s Football Woes

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has appointed former Nigeria Football Association Secretary-General Ambassador Fanny Amun, MON, to lead a fact-finding committee investigating the country’s recent setbacks in international football.

Amun, a respected administrator and coach who guided the Golden Eaglets to the 1993 FIFA U-17 World Cup title in Japan, will chair the six-member panel following the Super Falcons’ failure to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

The committee was constituted by the NFF after Nigeria’s disappointing campaign at the ongoing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, where the 10-time African champions were eliminated by Cameroon in the quarter-finals.

The Falcons subsequently received another opportunity to remain in contention for the World Cup through the inter-confederation play-off route but suffered a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in Casablanca.

The result means Nigeria will miss the Women’s World Cup for the first time since the competition was inaugurated in 1991.

Amun brings considerable experience to the assignment, having served as Secretary-General of the former Nigeria Football Association, now the NFF, and played a key role in football administration. He also achieved major success on the technical front by leading the Golden Eaglets to victory at the 1999 FIFA U-17 World Cup, where Nigeria emerged world champions.

He will be joined on the committee by former Nigeria U-20 coach and President of the Nigeria Football Coaches Association, Ladan Bosso; former Super Falcons captain and multiple Women’s AFCON winner Desire Oparanozie; former Super Eagles captain, AFCON winner and World Cup star Mutiu Adepoju; and former FIFA referee Dr Alex Mana.

Chairman of the Sokoto State Football Association, Mohammed Nasir Sa’idu, will serve as secretary.

The panel is expected to examine the factors behind Nigeria’s recent struggles across its national teams and make recommendations to address identified shortcomings.

Its work will be closely watched, particularly as the Super Falcons’ historic absence from the 2027 World Cup has raised fresh questions about the state, management and development of Nigerian football.

For Amun, the assignment brings together his experience in both football administration and coaching, placing one of Nigeria’s most experienced football figures at the centre of efforts to identify the problems and chart a path towards recovery.