Troost-Ekong labels Nigeria World Cup miss as ‘tough blow’

Former Nigeria national team captain William Troost-Ekong has revisited Nigeria’s absence from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The tournament will take place from June 11 to July 19, 2026. It will be jointly hosted by sixteen cities—eleven in the United States, three in Mexico, and two in Canada.

The tournament will be the first FIFA World Cup to be hosted by three nations, and the first to include 48 teams, an expansion from 32. Nigeria’s hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup were officially ended following FIFA’s ruling on the country’s case against the DR Congo national team.

Nigeria had petitioned FIFA citing DR Congo fielding three ineligible players during the African play-off final. Nigeria had lost the game 4-3 on penalties following a tense 1-1 draw after extra time.

‘There was a lot of pressure’

“It’s a tough place to be. In 2022, we wanted to be in Qatar and missed out. We won our group but didn’t get past Ghana on away goals, which was really tough to take,” Troost-Ekong told beIN SPORTS.

“This time, with more slots available for African countries, the strength of our squad and the magnitude of Nigeria as a footballing nation, there was a lot of pressure.”

Troost-Ekong, who has already hanged his boots from international football, further hailed coach Eric Chelle for doing a fantastic job and turning round a difficult start in the campaign.

“I think the coach, Eric Chelle, has done a fantastic job turning around a difficult start because there was upheaval from the moment he took the job,” added Troost-Ekong.

Nigeria are preparing for friendly matches

“There will be changes again. I have retired from international football, and it was a World Cup I wanted to be part of. In moments like this, we have to take a serious look at the structure we have in place in Nigeria in terms of preparing for long-term success.

“When you look at nations that have done well from the continent, they have put the right structures in place for 10 to 15 years, rather than relying solely on talent. We need a clear long-term vision.”

Nigeria are currently preparing for a friendly against Iran. The planned four-team Nigeria friendly tournament features Jordan, Iran, and Costa Rica, and has been moved from Amman to Antalya.