REVEALED: How FG Is Indebted To Retired 9th WAFCON-winning Super Falcons

By Harry Awurumibe, Africa’s No.1 Women Football Journalist

A line in our old national anthem says: “The labour of our heroes past shall never be in vain…”, a battle cry which still resonates even in today’s Nigeria despite the change of the anthem.

In fact, whoever wrote that line definitely had noble intentions about the beauty of remembering our history and honouring the living and the memory of those who contributed their decent quotas to national development in different spheres of life, including sports and football in particular.

Maybe it is just not in our culture as a people to remember our history and honour our heroes or heroines as we as a people pay little or no attention to our past heroes. Can it be that in Nigeria, we are too occupied with today to remember the labour of our heroes past just as it looks like we live for here and now.

Perhaps the recent demands by the retired women’s national football team players under the umbrella of United Ex-Super Falcons (Worldwide) for the federal government led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to also extend the national honours and financial largesse given to the current members of the Super Falcons who won the 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) title in Morocco last month is a step in a right direction.

Recall an elated president Tinubu on behalf of a grateful country invited the Coach Justine Madugu- tutored Super Falcons that came  back from the brinx of defeat to beat hosts Atlas Lionesses of Morocco 3-2 at Stade Olympique de Rabat on Saturday, July 2026, in the WAFCON 2024 epic final, to a lavish reception at the Presidential Villa Abuja on their return to Nigeria.

At the occasion Tinubu showered the team with mouthwatering gifts, including a national honours of Officer f the Order of the Niger (OON), 3-bedroom flats each, and a handsome cash of 100,000 USD per each player and 50,000 USD and same national honours and 2-bedroom flats for each member of the coaching crew and backroom staff respectively.

Also, Super Falcons have been receiving huge amounts of cash donations from some corporate organisations in Nigeria for winning the 10th WAFCON title for Nigeria at a time Nigerians are looking to see one single thing that will make the citizens forget the excruciating economic hardships that majority of Nigerians are enduring since the removal of petrol subsidy by President Tinubu since two years ago on his assumption of office on May 29, 2023.

Never in the 32-year history of the Super Falcons and 27 years of participation in WAFCON had the players, coaches, and backroom staff receive the humongous amount of cash rewards and landed properties showered on the Super Falcons of 2025 Set led by Madugu, who himself has also received chieftaincy title, cash donations and houses from his home state, Adamawa.

However, as the euphoria of the Super Falcons’ 10th WAFCON win and the federal government’s lavish rewards continue to reverberate, United Ex-Super Falcons, joined other Nigerians in saluting the feat achieved by their compatriots but have also seized the opportunity to demand that Tinubu fulfill past promises made to them by the past federal governments both the military and civilians because government is a continuum.

United Ex-Super Falcons spokesperson Patience Avre-Odeli, who spoke from her base in Chicago, Illinois in the United States of America (USA), argued that Nigeria’s dominance in women’s football in Africa for the past three decades, during which the country has won 10 out of 13 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), including the latest edition held in Morocco last month is not achieved by the present squad alone.

According to the former Super Falcons attacker known in her playing days for her speed and agility insists that Super Falcons retired players laid a solid foundation which saw the country winning nine WAFCON trophies from 1998 to 2018 before the 10th title won in Morocco last month.

Said she: “I make bold to say that my generation and those who came after us won many WAFCON titles for Nigeria, but we were not rewarded. In my time, we were repeatedly shortchanged by past military and civilian regimes and football officials.

“Let it be known that we only received meagre bonuses and unfulfilled promises of money and landing Abuja after winning major tournaments like WAFCON, the Olympic Games and the FIFA Women’s World World Cup.”

Continuing, Avre-Odeli expressed her frustration over an alleged ill treatment meted out to her and her contemporaries, many of whom, she claimed, are now living in difficult economic conditions in Nigeria and diaspora despite their immense sacrifices for the country.

She alleged that during former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, commitments made to the players were never honoured. She specifically called out a former NFF chief, accusing him of soliciting account details from players with no subsequent payments made.

“In addition to unpaid bonuses, officials and coaches hoarded items meant for players. It was common to see some federation officials and coaches wearing the national team jerseys bearing the names of players like myself, Prisca Emeafu, Martha Tarhemba, Kikelomo Ajayi, and Florence Omagbemi—while we had nothing to show for our dedication to Nigeria”,  Avre-Odeli also alleged.

The former Ufuoma Babes FC of Warri and Princess Jegede Babes FC of Lagos forward who was  part of the pioneering Super Falcons team that won the first-ever African Women Championship (now WAFCON) three times and featured for Nigeria in three FIFA Women’s World Cups and one Olympic Games  and also played a pivotal role in the historic squad that reached the quarterfinals of the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup in USA, called for the compensation of retired Falcons who won WAFCON titles for Nigeria.

Introduced in 1998 by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), WAFCON, the biennial women’s football competition for the best senior women’s football teams in Africa has become the birthright of Nigeria as the country has only failed to win the title on three occasions with Avre-Odeli winning with the team in 1998, 2000, and 2002 before moving on to play club football in USA and upon retirement pursued a course in health sector and working currently as a Medical Laboratory Technician in Chicago.

She has, however, praised President Tinubu for recognising the efforts of the Super Falcons after winning the 10th WAFCON title in Morocco, insisting it is the way to go but wants him to go a step further by also honour former members of Super Falcons who helped Nigeria to win nine WAFCON trophies before the 10th title was secured by Madugu-led Super Falcons in Morocco last month which attracted the lavish rewards showered on the team by Tinubu’s administration.

However, many Nigerians, including the former Secretary General of Nigeria Football Association (NFA) Alhaji Sani Ahmed Toro believe that United Ex-Super Falcons have a legitimate right to demand for federal government’s rewards for their past services for the country.

“I equally support their appeal to President Bola Tinubu to extend the federal government’s largesse being doled out to the team that recently won the 10th WAFCON title for Nigeria. It will be very good if Mr. President listens and honours these incredible pacesetters who gave their best to their father land”, Toro said.

Speaking further Toro, who was the Deputy General Co-ordinator, Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the first-ever African Women Championship (AWC) now WAFCON in 1998 when the Super Falcons won the first WAFCON title said he is in full support of the demands of former Super Falcons players for a national recognition too.

Said he: They did not get their fair treatment in those years they won many trophies for Nigeria. I joined in appealing to the federal government to honour our heroes and heroines past”.

As the call for the recognition of retired Super Falcons players gets louder, it has become imperative for the federal government to come out with a national reward policy that will stand the test of time.

In fact, the demands of the United Ex-Super Falcons for adequate compensation by President Tinubu should set us thinking on two fronts because they are not the first retired sports men and women demanding for recognition and compensation for bringing honours to the country but were not rewarded.

One, we should how be thinking of how can the sporting authorities namely  the National Sports Commission (NSC) or Federal Ministry of Sports and their agencies or parastatals/ departments make sure that those who served their fatherland are not neglected and turned to beggars in old age hence the need to urgently establish a Sports Special Trust Fund.

Two, how do we make sure that the labour of our heroes past is not, indeed, in vain? The answer is let the authorities please come up with creative ideas to keep our former sports heroes and heroines alive in our memories.

It is in deed a hard fact that addressing these two issues should not require rocket science to achieve,  although the NSC may not consider it to be a big deal. But it is not too late as the federal government can still afford to meaningfully recognise the living and  immortalise the departed national heroes and heroines- players, coaches and administrators and those who played important roles in bringing sporting honours to Nigeria.

Those who choose to serve Nigeria “with heart and might” should know that, in life and in death, their service is not in vain. This is definitely not too much to ask.

Finally, it is high time the federal government found out reasons for the sports federations’ indebtedness to present and past sportsmen and women and subsequently tackle the hydra-headed monster and defeat it.

Reasons for the heavy indebtedness includes unpaid benefits and bonuses; lack of structured welfare system, financial mismanagement and neglecting the welfare of athletes, leading to a cycle of debt and hardship and inadequate financial support for the sportsmen and women.

It is an open secret that Nigeria owes retired sports men and women due to unpaid benefits, lack of structured welfare, and inadequate financial support. Many former athletes face financial hardship, health issues, and inadequate healthcare after retirement, leading to a cycle of reliance on public sympathy for support.

A proposed solution is a sustainable pension and welfare system, including a dedicated pension scheme, government and corporate contributions, and a national database to track athletes.

Also, the establishment of Retired Athletes Welfare Units within sports federations to manage the welfare of retired athletes and maintain annual welfare budgets is the way to go if we must see the end of demands by our national heroes and heroines.