Nigeria's Super Eagles squad has travelled from their base in Fès to Marrakech, the venue for their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) quarter-final clash against Algeria on Saturday. This follows confirmation from the Nigerian government that outstanding match-winning bonuses have been disbursed, after overcoming administrative and foreign exchange hurdles.
On Wednesday, the team, coached by coach Eric Chelle, had reportedly threatened to boycott training and their journey to Marrakech due to unpaid bonuses from the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). However, Mrs Doris Uzoka-Anite, the Minister of State for Finance, announced yesterday via her official X (formerly Twitter) account that the government, in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), had resolved earlier foreign exchange processing issues to ensure prompt payment to the players.
"I am pleased to provide an update on the administrative progress regarding the match bonuses for our national team at AFCON 2025," she stated. "The Federal Government and the Central Bank of Nigeria have successfully streamlined the foreign exchange processing to ensure our players are rewarded without further delay."
According to the Minister, all group-stage bonuses have been fully released and have cleared the necessary regulatory stages, with the final transfers to players' accounts already underway. She explained that a fast-track conversion process was introduced to accommodate the players' preference for foreign currency payments. "We have implemented a fast-track conversion process to move funds into foreign currency, honouring the players' preferences," the Minister added.
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Dr Uzoka-Anite confirmed that the final disbursements to the players' domiciliary accounts were in progress and expected to reflect shortly. "The final transfers to domiciliary accounts are currently in flight. Players can expect these funds to reflect starting today or tomorrow," she stated.
She also noted that measures have been put in place to prevent future delays in paying players' entitlements. "Going forward, the process will be fully streamlined to ensure faster, more predictable disbursements aligned with international best practice," she affirmed.
Reaffirming the government's commitment to the national team's welfare, the Minister stressed that the focus remains on enabling the Super Eagles to maintain their performance as the tournament enters its decisive stages.
"Our focus remains entirely on supporting the team's welfare so they can maintain their incredible momentum in the knockout rounds," she said, adding, "We move forward with one goal: bringing the trophy home."
Reportedly invigorated by the news of their winning bonuses being disbursed, the players and officials flew out of Fès to Marrakech yesterday at 12 pm, ahead of Saturday's quarter-final showdown with Algeria's 'Fennecs'.
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This is not the first instance of bonus disputes affecting Nigerian football. A similar protest over World Cup qualifying bonuses reportedly contributed to the team's failure to secure a World Cup spot against DR Congo in Morocco.
