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Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC) Shehu Dikko, has confirmed that Super Eagles head coach, Eric Chelle, will remain in charge of Nigeria’s Super Eagles after an agreement was reached on a new contract.
Salary Increase, NFF To Also Pay Chelle’s Assistants
Dikko revealed this to journalists on Tuesday, following a meeting between officials of the NSC and the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) in Abuja, where plans for the future of the national teams were discussed.
Chelle’s initial two-year contract is due to expire at the end of 2026, and negotiations over an improved deal have been ongoing in recent months.
After a third-place finish at the 2025 AFCON in Morocco, Chelle was reported to have requested a monthly salary package of $130,000, which would also cover the remuneration of his assistants, among other conditions.
It is believed that his new salary will be $100,000, which will double his current earning of $50,000.
According to Dikko, the NFF will now pick up the bills of Chelle’s assistants, removing the burden of paying them directly from his own wages.
“With this new contract and new remuneration I think the NFF will do the necessary and finalise it,” Dikko said. “But at least I can confirm to you we have agreed a new terms with the Coach pending when the NFF will put it on the paper. But at least we have agreed to settle with the coach about his new remuneration we are going to increase his money.
“We are also going to take care of his assistants that are helping him and I’m sure the coach would be excited about it that has been put out of the way so NFF will deal with the rest.”
Building Towards World Cup 2030
Dikko also disclosed that Chelle will now be in charge of the U-23 Eagles team.
The last time the U-23 Eagles featured at the Olympics was in 2016 in Rio, where they won bronze medal under former Nigeria international Samson Siasia.
Also Read: If We Trust Chelle He’ll Qualify Us For Next World Cup –Ex-Super Eagles Star
Since then, the team failed to qualify for the last two Olympics in Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.
Dikko said:“We have discussed how we can build for the future because now we have the next AFCON, we have the next World Cup so we have to start preparing now, we have to start putting our heads together so that all the mistakes we has will not happen again, it is important to learn from our mistakes and see how we can make things better.
“So on that aspect we also agreed with the NFF that the coach will also take care of the U-23 national team because we can see the young players already coming to the Super Eagles who are within that age who are products of the future so instead of having different ideas, let’s have ideas from the U-23 to the Super Eagles so Eric Chelle and his team would add one or two people to support them.
“The objective is we have to build for 2030 now, we have to start building by bringing in the young ones now that would join the team which putting the blocks and the foundation.”
AFCON 2027 Qualifying Assignment
A Chelle’s next assignment with the Super Eagles is the qualifiers for the 2027 African Cup of Nations which will begin in September, 2026.
He recently led the Super Eagles to defend their Unity Cup title after a 3-0 win against Jamaica in the final in London in May.
By James Agberebi
16 Comments
Goodluck to you my favorite coach, although I would have preferred Siasia. That’s my personal opinion because old wine remains valuable.
Although I supported SAMSON SIASIA to be U-23 coach.
but for NFF announcing ERIC CHELLE to be U-23 team coach is a welcome development. This will make no room for sentiment in selecting players .
But NFF & ERIC CHELLE should remember that the FORMAT used to qualify for Olympic has changed compare to Old format.
Since the introduction of NEW FORMAT, the coach like Equavoen, Imama-Amapakabo, Salisu-Yusuf failed woefully to qualify for U-23 Olympic game in 2012, 2020, 2024 as a result of over reliance of foreign base players to prosecute qualifications.
Most of our players in Europe were not released by their respective club sides, which their clubs claimed that the U-23 AFCON competition (new format) was not in FIFA CALENDAR.
It is ONLY COACH SIASIA that was able to qualify U-23 Team for Olympic game in 2016 with the new format. And this is due to the fact that Coach SIASIA is a coach that knows how to build & groom players from the scratch and not over reliance of super stars (ready-made) foreign base players to prosecute qualifier matches.
NFF HAS TO BE SERIOUS WITH U-23 TEAM because is an avenue to access and produce good players next to Super eagle team. From this U-23 Team, many players will able to be ACCESSED, TESTED & TRUSTED before promoted to MAIN Super eagle team.
No players will be jumping directly to Super eagle team EXCEPT he was an EXTRAORDINARY player.
In the past U-23 OLYMPIC TEAM, when the like of KANU, BABAYARO, TARIBO, BABANGIDA, AIYEGBENI, AGHAHOWA, ISAAC-OKOROKWO, NSOFOR, EFE, OBASI, ANICHEBE, SHE HU-ABUBAKAR, ETEBO, EKONG promoted to Super eagle team, none of them disappointed, because we have already knew their QUALITIES AND POTENTIALS
This is good news. It’s good we tie him down now before the World Cup ends or we loose him.
I, also, think it’s a good idea to give him the U23 on the condition that he agrees to. I just hope the NFF will not delay finalising the details and have him signed the contract.
Don’t over crowd and overload eric chelle super Eagle job altogether with under 23.. let him focus on one alone…. make sure siasia handles under 23 because nobody will be more motivated than sia one! Furthermore double siasia job as super Eagle assistant or part of them, bring in amuneke as super Eagle assistant too, let them learn and get more experience.. for the sake of the future
Exactly my thoughts but I know critics will not comprehend but go digging the few scars in the CV of the above local coaches.
This is the best news coming from the NSC and NFF in this year 2026.
The Olympic Eagles has failed to qualify to two consecutive Olympic Games because of bad selection of Coaches and even wayo invitation of players we don’t know where they play their trade.
NSC’s approval of Chelle’s wage increase combined with the Coach now given the task of managing the U-23 team will surely help us to have quality and unbiased players invitation which will surely made the Super Eagles team better ahead of 2030 World Cup.
Good bless the Future of Nigeria Football.
No now, dem for no renew the contract. In fact, na sack dem for sack am.
Yeye pipo.
Our own is always backwards. Why did it take so long to do the needful? Obviously, his good performances does not matter to Awon Onigbese. What matters is how they can strike a money sharing deal with him. So they dragged it out, in the hope that he will agree to their terms. Or in the hope that he will fail, so they can install another half baked coach who will not mind that his salary is being shared.
They frown at competence but tolerate and even reward mediocrity.
A federation that failed catastrophically to qualify Nigeria for 2 world cups wants to continue in office! Since they won’t resign, they must be jettisoned from office.
The U23 AFCON qualifiers and the main tournament itself often fall outside FIFA windows, of course, unless CAF decides to stop being senseless this time around. I hope he realises he would need to rely mostly on home-based players till after he has qualified the team for the Olympics….?
This is an assignment meant for the likes of Ogunmodede and Ilechuwkwu, who know the league very well…..not one who struggles to breathe once Osimhen and Lookman are not in his squad.
We all can still remember how the CHAN experiment went.
I repeat, qualification for the 2028 Olympics is a MUST.
Very good from NSC and NFF. I believe Coach Chelle deserve the wage increase (doubled from $50k to $100k a month). For once Dikko and his team are doing the right thing at the right time. Good motivation to the coaching team and early preparation is required for all the qualifiers, including the 2030 WC Qualifiers.
Thumbs up Brother man Tony K. You nailed it.
Eric Chelle deserves the increment good one from the nsc and nff
This development gladdens hearts of many football followers in Nigeria. Hopefully,NFF will not disturb his activities with antics and sabotage.
I come in peace.
Nice ideas increasing his wage and giving him the under 23 job. Let leave all this Nigeria coaches before they come and mess things up again. What I love about Chelle is that he brings out the best in whom ever he plays. Right now am not even missing osimhen in the team… Everyone is up and doing. That a sign of a good coach. Our under 23 may just resemble the under 23 of 1996. It was as if it was the super Eagle in that team. The seem to be getting it right because they want to come back to office
This is good news. I commend the NFF for this bold decision. Having been tossed from one end of the pitch to the other and denied participation in a high-stakes contest, the SE now stands the chance to benefit from continuity and focused development.
The NFF should raise funds behind the scenes to pay the coaches on time and make this transformation a reality. Thorough preparations and high-class performance at all competitions should become the norm.
Congratulations on the new contract. But don’t allow some players feel the team is there birthright. Add and drop, elimination by substitution has always been the goal and formula that brings the best out of the SE.
Since Rohr came it’s been stagnant with some so cock sure of first t.eam jerseys as come sun come rain.
That is gradually changing but some players still need to go for excellence to prevail
I appreciate what the NSC and NFF has agreed on. My question is where will the U23 players be sourced from? Home or abroad? This is because getting foreign based players to play in the qualifying matches has always proved difficult with players flying in and out between matches, and also because they fall outside FIFA playing windows.
If they are going to be home based,then Eric Chelle will need to do early camping(months before the first match will be played)and begin to drill the players.
We have to get it right this time!