Nigerians missing as CAF announces match officials for AFCON 2025

By : Oluyemi Ogunseyin

Date: 27 November 2025 10:01pm WAT

Share :

President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Patrice Motsepe. (Photo by Phill Magakoe / AFP)

President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Patrice Motsepe. (Photo by Phill Magakoe / AFP)

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Thursday announced the list of referees assigned to officiate the matches of the Total Energies African Cup of Nations Morocco 2025 but no Nigerian was included.

CAF listed a total of 73 highly experienced referees, including 28 main referees, 31 assistant referees and 14 video assistant referees for this edition of Africa’s biggest football tournament, which will be held from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026.

The carefully selected referees represent all regions of the continent and include some of the most experienced referees in Africa, who have officiated matches in a number of major CAF tournaments in recent years.

According to CAF, all the appointed referees will arrive in Morocco on December 15, 2025, to attend an intensive preparatory course before the start of the tournament.

The program, which will be led by the CAF referees department, will include physical, technical and theoretical assessments aimed at ensuring the best performance throughout the tournament.

“This careful selection of highly experienced referees confirms CAF’s ongoing commitment to refereeing excellence, maintaining the integrity of competitions, and promoting technical standards in African football,” the football governing body said in a statement.

Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu a few weeks ago urged the Super Eagles to ensure that they recover their lost glory by going ahead to win the 2025 AFCON in Morocco.

Tinubu encouraged the team in a statement by his Special Adviser on Information & Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who said the president commended the Super Eagles for putting up their best efforts towards qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, despite their loss in the playoffs.

Onanuga said the President charged the Eagles to put behind them the loss to the Democratic Republic of Congo and prepare for the African Cup of Nations, which will be held from December 2025 to January 2026 in Morocco.

Nigeria’s dream of featuring in the World Cup was dashed as Congo DR eliminated the Super Eagles in a dramatic qualifier play-off in Morocco.

The Eagles lost in a penalty shootout after the game ended 1-1 in extra time. DR Congo triumphed 4-3 on penalties to advance to the Inter-Confederation play-off, keeping their own 2026 World Cup hopes alive.

According to Onanuga, President Tinubu said that, although it was painful that the Eagles failed to qualify for the World Cup tournament for the second consecutive time, the team must be commended for striving hard to reach the mundial, particularly after winning their first playoff match.

“Notwithstanding the unfortunate loss, we must commend the players for their efforts and continue to support them,” President Tinubu said.

“We must now plug all the loopholes. Our football administrators, players, and indeed all stakeholders must go back to the drawing board.

“Now is the time to focus all efforts on the Cup of Nations. Our Super Eagles must recover the lost glory.”

The three-time African champions are in Group C alongside the Taifa Stars of Tanzania, the Cranes of Uganda, and the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia.

Tags: