Country facts:

Flag:
Area:	923,768 sq km
Population:	135,031,164
Languages:	English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani
Currency:	naira (NGN)
Climate:	varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north

Nigeria

Nigeria soccer information

Nigeria are one of the leading lights in African football. They have reached three FIFA World Cup final competitions (1994, 1998, 2002) but despite impressing many with their football, they have never progressed beyond the round of 16.

Nigerian football celebrated its greatest success on foreign shores, with the Nigerian Olympic team securing the Gold medal at the Olympic Football Tournament in Atlanta in 1996. They have also participated at 12 African Cups of Nations, claiming the title twice (1980 and 1994).

An impressive list of honours is completed by triumphs at the FIFA U-17 World Y outh Championship in 1985 and 1993, but the U-20 team has also given the country great pleasure. Nigeria hosted the FIFA World Youth Championship in 1999, while the country has also been a pioneer for womens football in Africa. The Nigerian ladies team won the African Women Championship in 1998, 2000 and 2002, and participated in the FIFA Womens World Cup finals in 1991, 1995 and 1999.

Countless top players have emerged from Nigeria. Rashid Yekini (1993 African Player of the Year), Jay-Jay Okocha and Nwankwo Kanu (1996/1999 African Player of the Year) are just three of the players who have taken Nigerian football to the world. All three players have been crucial to their clubs fortunes, whether in Portugal, Germany, England, Italy, France or the Netherlands.

HONOURS

FIFA World Cup appearances 3 (1994, 1998, 2002)

Continental titles Winner CAN 1980, CAN 1994

Runners-Up CAN 1984, CAN 1988, CAN 1990, CAN 2000

Best Results Winner FIFA U-17 World Cup Final (1985), FIFA U-17 World Cup Final (1993), Olympic Football Tournament Final (1996), FIFA U-17 World Cup Final (2007)

Runners-Up FIFA U-17 World Cup Final (1987), FIFA U-20 World Cup Final (1989), FIFA U-17 World Cup Final (2001), FIFA U-20 World Cup Final (2005) Third FIFA U-20 World Cup Final (1985) Fourth FIFA Confederations Cup (1995)