Nigerian football experiencing ‘worst time in history’, says Afcon winner Segun Odegbami

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Nigeria's men failed to qualify for both the 2022 and 2026 Fifa World Cups

As Nigeria begin their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifying campaign, former international Segun Odegbami, who won the tournament on home soil in 1980, says the country is experiencing the "worst time" in its football history.

Over the past 12 months both the Super Eagles and Super Falcons failed to qualify for their respective Fifa World Cups.

But beyond the failure of the senior national teams, Nigeria has also endured disappointing results at age-group level and in African club competitions - although the West Africans recently reached the quarter-finals of the Under-20 Women's World Cup.

Odegbami says the diminishing returns represent a "tectonic shift" for one of the continent's traditional powers.