‘Only Football Unites Nigeria’, Comedian Bovi Tasks Super Eagles Players On National Assignment

Popular Nigerian comedian, Bovi Ugboma, has said that football remains the only force capable of uniting Nigerians, as he reacted to the Super Eagles’ semi-final exit from the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Morocco on Wednesday night.

In a video posted on his Instagram page on Thursday, a day after Nigeria’s penalty shootout loss to Morocco, Bovi—who disclosed that he has several friends within the national team, departed from his usual policy of staying out of players’ professional affairs, saying it was not good for them to be casual about national assignment.

“If there’s anything that unites Nigeria as a nation, it’s football. Mark my words, it’s football,” the entertainer declared.

He explained further, saying, “Religion stops this country from burning because we are very religious people. Politics divides this nation because self-interest comes into play. But football is the only thing that brings Muslims and Christians, North, South-East, and West together.”

Bovi went on to address Super Eagles striker Samuel Chukwueze and other players who missed crucial chances during the tournament, using a vivid analogy to stress the importance of composure and decisiveness.

“You have to treat it like you are an assassin. I’ve never seen in my life where an assassin has an opportunity to kill somebody and chooses to go like this or like this while chewing gum.

“Chukwueze, I forgive him from the bottom of my heart, but you need to understand that the weight of the nation lies in your hand,” he said.

The comedian warned against prioritising individual glory over collective success, arguing that such an approach has cost Nigeria at critical moments.

“If you go for glory before victory, more often than not, you will mess up. More often than not, you become the victim. Don’t let that ember come alive. We let an advantage sleep,” Bovi said.

He added that his criticism was not limited to the current generation of players, noting that, “I’m not blaming only Chukwueze. In 1994, those were my heroes, but guess what? They messed up at the most critical moment with two minutes to go. Nevertheless, they are still our heroes because it was literally our first time at the World Cup.”

Bovi also cautioned players about the dangers of social media engagement during tournaments, warning that online praise can be deceptive and distracting.

“Social media will be messing you guys up real bad, not just from this tournament but previous tournaments. You get carried away by the praise. Guess what? They don’t like you. They like what you do. Don’t let the comments, don’t let the likes fool you. The tide can change anytime,” he warned.

He cited Argentina’s approach during the 2018 World Cup, when they needed to beat Nigeria to qualify.

“When Argentina had to play us, no member of the Argentine team was on social media. We were on social media, posting all kinds of things. Stop going on social media during tournaments,” he said.

Bovi’s message became sterner when he addressed players’ sense of responsibility to the nation, despite longstanding administrative challenges within the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).

“Dear Super Eagles and intending Super Eagles players, have this at the back of your mind when you are playing for Nigeria: regardless of how the NFF treats you, if you choose to say I will play for Nigeria, understand that you have the potential, the power to unite Nigeria,” he said.

“You guys have chances to be heroes, to write your name in history and never be forgotten. Don’t continue to mess this up. It’s very important. You guys are our potential heroes.”

While acknowledging systemic failures in Nigerian football administration, Bovi insisted that players must rise above them.

“When you wear the Nigerian jersey, it’s beyond football, beyond your salary, beyond your rights. You already know that your system is messed up when it comes to some of these things. You already know.”

He concluded with a stark warning, “So if you’re not ready to die, don’t play.”