WWC: Super Falcons threaten to boycott opening match over bonuses
The Super Falcons also had a preparatory camp cancelled weeks before the summer’s showpiece event in Australia and New Zealand and could now skip their first World Cup clash with Canada on July 21.
Nigeria’s women’s national team are threatening to boycott their opening game of the 2023 Women’s World Cup over an ongoing dispute surrounding match bonuses.
The Super Falcons, who were drawn in Group B with co-hosts Australia, Canada and Ireland, have been engrossed in a heated row with the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) after accusations that the governing body had failed to properly compensate players.
The female players are also angry over cancellation of a preparation camp just weeks before the team travelled to Australia and New Zealand.
Nigeria are set to face Olympic champions Canada in their opening group stage match on July 21 but reports suggest that the team are likely to boycott the match if the situation is not resolved.
Head coach Randy Waldrum called out the NFF recently, stating on the Sounding Off On Soccer Podcast : “I joke about it with people here in the U.S. We have less days than a college pre-season to get ready for a World Cup. It blows my mind.
“We had to pick a final 23 based on the last camp. Some of these players have been off since May, so I really don’t know the physical condition that they’re in, despite sending them programmes to follow,” he said.
Boycotts are not unchartered territory for Nigeria, who refused to participate in a training session last summer ahead of their third-place play-off match against Zambia at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations due to compensation issues.
None of the Super Falcons players has received their allocated allowances or bonus of over $10,000 for previous wins over Botswana, Burundi and Cameroon.
About The Author
