Eguavoen handed Super Falcons coaching job for 2028 Olympic qualifiers
The Nigeria Football Federation has announced that former Super Eagles head coach Augustine Eguavoen will take charge of the Super Falcons on an interim basis for their 2028 Olympic Games qualifying fixtures against Comoros in October, Made In Africa Sport reports.
Eguavoen, who will oversee the team as the search for a substantive head coach continues, brings considerable international experience to the assignment.
The 61-year-old tactician led the Super Eagles to a bronze medal at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt and has managed Nigeria at the highest level.
According to the NFF, he will be assisted by Christopher Danjuma, head coach of Nigeria Women‘s Football League side Nasarawa Amazons.
Danjuma has extensive experience with Nigeria’s women’s national teams, having previously led the Falconets at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica.
Former Super Eagles goalkeeper trainer Olatunji Baruwa will serve as goalkeeper trainer. He has also worked with several of Nigeria’s national teams, including the CHAN Eagles, Flying Eagles and Golden Eaglets.
Former Super Falcons defender Ayisat Yusuf, who has since moved into coaching, will also join the technical crew as an assistant coach.
Yusuf won 68 international caps for Nigeria and represented the country at four Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, three FIFA Women’s World Cups and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
Madugu sacked after historic World Cup failure
Madugu’s dismissal came just over a year after he led the Super Falcons to a record-extending 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title.
He initially took charge on an interim basis in September 2024 following the resignation of American coach Randy Waldrum, before being handed the substantive role.
However, Nigeria’s fortunes deteriorated at the 2026 WAFCON, where the defending champions failed to reach the semi-finals and subsequently lost 2-1 to South Africa in the play-off.
The defeat ended the Super Falcons’ record of appearing at every edition of the Women’s World Cup since the inaugural tournament in 1991.
The NFF has also launched a fact-finding committee to investigate the national team’s recent performances, with particular focus on the Super Falcons’ unexpected failure to qualify for the World Cup.
Then NFF president Ibrahim Gusau inaugurated the committee and gave it two weeks to investigate the direct and remote causes of the poor results and submit its report.
Super Falcons begin Olympic quest
The 10-time African champions will begin their Olympic qualifying campaign in the second round against Comoros, with both legs scheduled for Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne-Remo on October 9 and 13, 2026.
Nigeria received a bye into the second round as one of the three highest-ranked teams in the qualifying competition, while Comoros advanced after defeating Sudan 30-0 on aggregate.
The Super Falcons must navigate four rounds of two-legged knockout ties to claim one of Africa’s two available places at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
Should Nigeria eliminate Comoros, they will advance to the third round, scheduled for February 23 to March 6, 2027, where they will face either the Democratic Republic of Congo or Morocco.
A place in the fourth round would set up a tie against one of Tunisia, Senegal, Benin Republic or Mali between October 4 and 12, 2027.
The final round of qualifying is scheduled for November 23 to December 4, 2027, with Nigeria potentially facing one of Guinea, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Central African Republic, Algeria or Burkina Faso.