Despite not yet playing their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Benin Republic, the Super Eagles of Nigeria have secured their ticket to the 2025 AFCON tournament in Morocco, according to Soar Super Eagles on X.
How Super Eagles qualified
This was confirmed after Rwanda suffered a 1-0 loss to Libya on Thursday evening.
Nigeria currently sits at the top of Group D in the AFCON qualifiers with 10 points after four games, five points clear of third-placed Rwanda, who have now played five games.
This means that, with only one game remaining for the Amavubi, they can no longer catch up with the Super Eagles, who have now qualified as one of the top two teams.
OFFICIAL: The Super Eagles have qualified for AFCON 2025 with two games to spare.
Morroco bound ✈️ #AFCON2025Q | #SoarSuperEagles pic.twitter.com/SnFXpTPry4
— Soar Super Eagles (@SSE_NGA) November 14, 2024
Three points against Benin still the objective
However, Nigeria will still aim to secure three points against Benin Republic to make a statement, having lost to the Cheetahs in June during the World Cup qualifiers—a result that jeopardized their chances of qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
Super Eagles legend Mutiu Adepoju has urged the team to not only seek a win for qualification but also to avenge their loss in June.
He said,
“It’s going to be important to win the game. It is important to me, it is important to the players, and everyone in Nigeria to win that game because we have to make a bold statement against Benin Republic.
“Number one, to qualify for the AFCON. Then secondly, to make them know that what they did, beating us in June, was just by the way. It’s not as if they are superior to Nigeria. The players should show that, so we can be proud.”
Having secured qualification for the continental tournament, the Super Eagles of Nigeria will now aim to secure a spot in the World Cup. However, they will need a near-perfect performance in their remaining games to achieve this.
