Nigeria has been omitted from the list of countries providing match officials in the form of referees, assistant referees and VAR officials at AFCON 2025.
Nigeria will have no match officials (referees, assistant referees and VAR officials) at the upcoming TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Morocco 2025, following the release of the official match officials list by the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF).
According to CAF, a total of 73 highly experienced officials have been appointed for the tournament, which runs from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026. The list includes 28 referees, 31 assistant referees, and 14 VAR officials, drawn from various regions across the continent. However, no Nigerian referee, assistant referee, or VAR official made the final cut.
CAF stated that the selected officials represent some of Africa’s most accomplished match controllers, many of whom have handled major continental competitions in recent years. The governing body emphasized that the appointments reflect its commitment to “refereeing excellence, competition integrity, and the continuous enhancement of technical standards” across African football.
All selected match officials are expected to arrive in Morocco on 15 December 2025 for an intensive preparatory programme. According to CAF, the training camp led by the Referees Department will feature physical, technical, and theoretical assessments aimed at ensuring peak performance throughout the tournament.
The omission of Nigerian referees highlights ongoing concerns about the country’s absence in top-level officiating roles on the continental stage, despite its strong footballing heritage. As the AFCON kickoff draws near, the development has fueled renewed calls for investment in Nigeria’s refereeing structure and improved pathways for officials to compete at the highest level.
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