ABUJA — Nigeria’s sports authorities have agreed a new contract in principle with Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle, expanding his role to manage the national Under-23 team as part of a long-term football restructuring plan.
The decision follows a high-level meeting on Tuesday at the National Sports Commission (NSC) headquarters in Abuja, attended by NSC Chairman Shehu Dikko and Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President Ibrahim Gusau.
The improved package will see the NFF finalise formal terms for the Malian tactician, covering upgraded salaries for Chelle and his assistants alongside strict performance benchmarks.
“We have agreed on a new term sheet with the coach, and the NFF will put it on paper,” Mr. Dikko said after the talks. “The coach was very, very excited about it.”
A unified football philosophy
In a significant shift in strategy, Chelle will take immediate charge of the Under-23 side—traditionally known as the ‘Dream Team’—to create a seamless technical pathway between the youth and senior national setups.
Additional technical staff will fill in to manage youth fixtures whenever scheduling conflicts arise with the senior national team.
“Instead of having different ideas, let’s have the same ideas from the Under-23s to the Super Eagles,” Mr. Dikko explained, dismissing concerns that the expanded role would overburden the manager. “It is now that we have to start building and bringing in the young ones.”
The Under-23 side holds an iconic place in African football history, having become the continent’s first Olympic gold medalists at the Atlanta 1996 Games, followed by silver in 2008 and bronze in 2016. However, the team has struggled recently, failing to qualify for both the Tokyo and Paris Olympic tournaments.
Rebuilding after World Cup heartbreak
The administrative overhaul comes as Nigerian football attempts to recover from missing out on the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Super Eagles failed to qualify after a painful defeat to the Democratic Republic of Congo in the African play-off series. A subsequent NFF legal protest challenging the eligibility of several Congolese players was dismissed by FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee, confirming Nigeria’s absence from a second consecutive global tournament.
With the focus now shifting toward the next Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and the 2030 World Cup qualification cycles, authorities insist the new contract lays the foundation for a complete system recovery.
The NFF is expected to officially publish the full details of Chelle’s contract and his expanded technical team in the coming weeks.
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