The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has announced the appointment of ex-Bayern Munich player, Bruno Labbadia as the new Super Eagles coach, with immediate effect.
Labbadia’s appointment was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday morning, August 27, 2024.
Labbadia becomes the 37th Head Coach of the Super Eagles after the resignation of former coach, Finidi George.
The statement issued by the NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi said: “The NFF Executive Committee has approved the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee to appoint Mr. Bruno Labbadia as the Head Coach of the Super Eagles. The appointment is with immediate effect.”
Who is Bruno Labbadia
Born in Darmstadt, Germany on 8th February 1966, Labbadia, won two caps for the German national team in his playing career that took him through clubs such as home-town team Darmstadt 98, Hamburger SV, FC Kaiserslautern, Bayern Munich, FC Cologne, Werder Bremen, Armenia Bielefeld and Karlsruher SC. He triumphed in the German Bundesliga with Bayern Munich as a player in 1994.
He coached famous names Hertha Berlin and VfB Stuttgart this decade, and previously, VfL Wolfsburg, Hamburger SV, and Bayer Leverkusen, among others, and holds a UEFA Pro License.
He is only the sixth German, after Karl-Heinz Marotzke (who had two stints between 1970 and 1974), Gottlieb Göller (1981), Manfred Höner (1988-1989), Berti Vogts (2007-2008) and Gernot Rohr (2016-2021) to lead the Super Eagles.
He is only the sixth German, after Karl-Heinz Marotzke (who had two stints between 1970 and 1974), Gottlieb Göller (1981), Manfred Höner (1988-1989), Berti Vogts (2007-2008) and Gernot Rohr (2016-2021) to lead the Super Eagles.
Challenges ahead
Labbadi’s immediate challenge is to take charge of the three-time African champions for two 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin Republic (Saturday 7th September in Uyo) and Rwanda (Tuesday, 10th September in Kigali), with four other matches to conclude the qualifying race following in October and November.
His appointment comes after the Super Eagles drew against familiar foes the Benin Republic in the qualification race for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)
Placed in Group D, the Super Eagles face Benin Republic who defeated them recently in a 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
In the draw ceremony held in Johannesburg, South Africa last month, Nigeria will also play Libya and Rwanda – who are also part of the Super Eagles’ lot for the race to the World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico in two years.
The qualifiers for the 2025 AFCON will begin in September and end in November 2025. But the competition will be held between December 21 2025 and January 18, 2026.
Caged Eagles
Nigeria’s AFCON 2025 qualifiers offer a redemption chance for the Super Eagles who have suffered misfortunes since finishing as runners-up in the last edition of the competition earlier in the year.
The Super Eagles only managed three points from four games in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the latest being a disappointing loss to the Cheetahs of Benin Republic.
That defeat triggered a barrage of criticisms from fans who wondered what could be wrong with a team parading Africa’s best player Victor Osimhen (he did not play against Benin) and a host of other stars.
Calls for George Finidi’s sack as the head coach of the team reached new highs in the wake of the defeat. Days after, the former international resigned from the post about two months after he was appointed.