Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets may still have a chance to feature in the 2025 CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) following the Confederation of African Football's (CAF) decision to expand the tournament from 12 to 16 teams.
CAF’s Executive Committee approved the new format, allowing four additional teams to compete in the youth championship, scheduled to take place in Morocco from 30 March to 19 April 2025.
This expansion also means that all eight quarter-finalists will qualify for the 2025 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar as Africa’s representatives.
The decision comes after growing concerns from football analysts, who found it surprising that CAF had initially refused to increase the number of participating teams despite FIFA doubling Africa’s World Cup slots from five to ten.
Nigeria's potential route to U-17 AFCON
With the new expansion, Nigeria, a five-time world champion, can begin to dream of a place at the U-17 AFCON.
Nigeria's failure to qualify directly for the U-17 AFCON was disappointing, but the tournament's expansion to 16 teams could be a silver lining for the Golden Eaglets.
So far, ten countries have already qualified for the biennial tournament: Egypt, Morocco, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Uganda, Angola, and Zambia.
Six additional teams will be selected to complete the 16-team lineup.
Nigeria finished third in the 2024 WAFU B U-17 Championship after defeating Ghana 3-2 in the third-place match.
The first and second-placed teams, Burkina Faso and Côte d’Ivoire, secured automatic spots.
However, with six more teams needed, Nigeria stands a strong chance of earning a place at the 2025 U-17 AFCON, keeping their hopes of continental and global participation alive.
