The chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, says the payment dispute between the Super Eagles and the Nigeria Football Federation has been resolved after the players threatened a training and traveling boycott on Wednesday.
Mr Dikko stated this Thursday on Channels TV. He disclosed that the players would start receiving alerts on Thursday or Friday, attributing the delay to lengthy processing formalities between the office of the accountant general of the federation and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“It’s normal for players to ask when alerts will come. But I don’t think any player made any public statement. It started from speculation,” Mr Dikko said. “The players will start getting alerts, maybe today or tomorrow, for the first-round matches, and as they progress, payments for subsequent stages will follow.”
He added, “Let me give you the timelines of how the issues work. First and foremost, I must tell you that Mr President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, duly approved the special budget for the Africa Cup of Nations as far back as November 14, 2025.
“But approving the money is different from getting the money out. It takes time for the money to be processed through finance, the office of the accountant general, and the CBN.”
This development followed reports of the squad’s threat to boycott training and the trip to Marrakech on Thursday for Nigeria’s 2025 AFCON quarterfinal match against Algeria, citing non-payment of win bonuses for the matches against Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, and Mozambique at the tournament.
Meanwhile, Mr Dikko confirmed that the players have backtracked and will train and travel on Thursday, stating, “I tell you, the team trained yesterday, definitely. The team will be traveling today, definitely.”
