Nigeria’s Super Eagles have been thrown into uncertainty at the Africa Cup of Nations after players and officials reportedly suspended travel plans over unpaid match bonuses, casting a shadow over their quarter-final showdown.
Sources close to the camp indicated that the players and technical crew declined to move to Marrakech, insisting that outstanding entitlements must be addressed before any further commitments.
The development has unsettled preparations at a critical stage of the tournament.
A BBC Africa correspondent currently in Morocco, Oluwashina Okeleji, disclosed the situation on X, noting that frustration has been building within the camp despite the team’s impressive run.
Notably, Nigeria has been one of the most dominant sides at the 2025 AFCON, winning all four matches played so far and emerging as the tournament’s highest-scoring team.
That momentum, however, now risks being derailed by off-field tensions.
According to officials familiar with the matter, bonuses covering the group-stage victories and the Round of 16 encounter are yet to be paid.
The Super Eagles cruised past Tanzania, Tunisia and Uganda before dismantling Mozambique 4–0 to book a last-eight place.
The standoff is not without precedent. In November 2025, the Super Eagles staged a brief protest over similar bonus concerns ahead of a World Cup playoff against Gabon, a dispute that was settled within a day.
As Nigeria prepares to face Algeria on Saturday evening in Morocco, attention has now shifted from tactics and team selection to urgent negotiations behind the scenes, with fans hoping the crisis will be swiftly defused to keep the title dream alive.