Gusau’s next mandate: why Nigerian football should consider continuity – Continental News

The forthcoming Nigeria Football Federation election presents Nigerian football with an important choice: continue with the current direction or begin another chapter with a new leadership.

For Ibrahim Gusau, the argument for another mandate is not built around the claim that Nigerian football has reached perfection. It is built around a more practical question: is the foundation being laid strong enough to justify continuity?

By that measure, there is a reasonable case to be made.

The most visible evidence remains the national teams. The Super Falcons’ triumph at the 2025 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations gave Nigeria a record 10th continental title, while the Super Eagles followed with a bronze medal at the 2025 AFCON after their silver-medal finish in 2023.

The younger national teams have also remained competitive. The Flamingos secured bronze at the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, while the Flying Eagles reached the last eight of the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

But administrators should not be judged solely by trophies. The more important question is whether structures are being developed to make success less dependent on individual generations of players and coaches.

That is where some of the developments under the current administration deserve attention.

The national teams have continued to utilise international windows for friendly matches, giving coaches opportunities to test players and formations. The Super Eagles’ Afro-Caribbean Unity Cup victories in 2025 and 2026 have also added competitive international exposure to the calendar.

In refereeing, capacity development remains an important part of the federation’s agenda. Training younger officials, improving communication equipment and expanding VAR training are investments whose benefits may become more apparent over time.

Infrastructure projects are perhaps even more important. Through FIFA Forward 3.0 funding, the NFF has committed to the development of a 68-room players’ hostel, two training pitches and the renovation of another pitch.

These projects may not produce immediate headlines, but they address the kind of structural deficiencies that have hampered Nigerian football for years.

The domestic game also requires sustained attention. The NPFL has recorded progress in keeping to its schedule, while the NNL has continued efforts to improve its organisation and commercial prospects.

A stronger domestic football structure is essential because that is where Nigeria’s next generation of players, coaches and referees will emerge.

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There is also an institutional argument for continuity. In March 2026, the NFF Congress unanimously passed a vote of confidence in the Gusau-led Executive Committee and approved September 26 for the federation’s elective congress.

That vote does not decide the election, nor should it be interpreted as an automatic endorsement of another term. But it demonstrates that the current leadership has secured a measure of institutional confidence.

Of course, Gusau’s administration must also acknowledge what remains unfinished.

Nigerian football still needs better infrastructure, stronger club administration, improved financing, enhanced player welfare, more effective grassroots development and a more commercially sustainable football ecosystem.

These challenges should not be ignored simply because there have been successes.

But neither should the successes be dismissed because challenges remain.

The strongest argument for continuity is that football development requires patience. Projects need time to mature, institutions need consistency and reforms are rarely completed within a single electoral cycle.

A change of leadership can bring fresh ideas, but continuity can preserve institutional knowledge and allow existing programmes to reach completion.

If Gusau earns another mandate, it should therefore come with greater expectations, not fewer.

The next four years should be about converting promising initiatives into measurable results, strengthening the domestic game, improving infrastructure and ensuring that the progress already recorded becomes sustainable.

The choice before Nigerian football should not simply be about Gusau or his opponents.

It should be about direction, stability and results.

If the current direction is producing meaningful progress, then continuity deserves serious consideration.

For Nigerian football, another Gusau mandate could provide the stability required to consolidate what has been achieved, correct what has not worked and build a stronger foundation for the future.