Sports
Nigeria officially out of 2026 World Cup as FIFA confirms DR Congo for play-offs
Nigeria officially out of 2026 World Cup as FIFA confirms DR Congo for play-offs
The world football governing body, FIFA, has formally confirmed Democratic Republic of the Congo as Africa’s representative in the inter-confederation play-offs for the 2026 World Cup, shutting the door on Nigeria’s qualification bid.
The confirmation was contained in an accreditation circular released to the media ahead of the play-off tournament, where FIFA unveiled the competition format and listed the six countries that will vie for the remaining two slots at the global showpiece.
DR Congo was named as the Confederation of African Football’s flag bearer, leaving no avenue for Nigeria to reclaim a place in the race to the Mundial.
The development comes months after the Nigeria Football Federation lodged a protest challenging the outcome of their CAF play-off tie against the Congolese side in November 2025.
Nigeria had alleged that their opponents fielded ineligible players in the decisive fixture, which ended 1-1 in regulation time before the Super Eagles fell short in the ensuing penalty shootout. The NFF had sought a reversal of the result in a bid to secure Nigeria’s slot in the inter-confederation play-offs.
However, FIFA’s latest communication made no mention of any alteration to the qualified teams, signalling that the earlier result remains valid and that Nigeria’s appeal did not succeed.
In outlining the competition, FIFA stated that six nations would battle for the final two tickets to the expanded 2026 World Cup, which will be staged across 16 host cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
According to the confirmed line-up, Bolivia, DR Congo, Iraq, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname will compete in the mini-tournament.
The play-offs are scheduled to begin on March 26, with New Caledonia facing Jamaica, while Bolivia will take on Suriname in the other fixture.
DR Congo is set to square up against the winner between New Caledonia and Jamaica on March 31, with a World Cup berth at stake.
For Nigeria, the announcement effectively brings an end to hopes of featuring at the 2026 tournament, marking a significant setback for the three-time African champions.
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International
‘Completely False’ — Moreno Denies Using AI to Prepare Games
Robert Moreno has begun his interim tenure as South Korea’s coach with a denial of one of the more unusual controversies attached to his coaching career, claims that he used ChatGPT to help prepare his teams for matches.
The Spanish coach, who arrived in South Korea this weekend, was asked about the allegation as he began work with the national side.
Moreno was accused by Russian media earlier this year of heavily relying on artificial intelligence during his spell at Sochi, where he left in September 2025 following a poor run of results.
He has consistently rejected the claim.
Moreno said the reports were “completely false” and argued that his use of technology had been misrepresented.
His explanation comes as he takes over a South Korean side attempting to recover from a turbulent World Cup campaign. The team crashed out in the group stage, leading Hong Myung-bo to resign and leaving the Korea Football Association under pressure over both the team’s performance and its previous recruitment process.
The KFA appointed Moreno as a temporary replacement rather than immediately committing to a permanent coach. He is expected to lead the team through six international matches, beginning with September and October friendlies against Ecuador, Uruguay, Venezuela and Uzbekistan.
His first squad includes veteran captain Son Heung-min, who now plays for Los Angeles FC, as well as Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae.
Moreno said he wants his tenure to be about more than results, with the immediate goal of rebuilding the relationship between the national team and its supporters.
“I want to make Korean football fans happy,” he said.
For now, however, the AI controversy remains part of the baggage surrounding his appointment, something Moreno appears keen to put behind him as he begins the task of rebuilding South Korea’s national team.
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Sports
Falconets Crush New Caledonia 10-1, Set Up England Clash
Falconets Crush New Caledonia 10-1, Set Up England Clash
Nigeria’s Falconets have secured their place in the Round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland after producing a record-breaking 10-1 victory over New Caledonia in their final Group F match on Sunday.
The emphatic victory at the Stadion Miejski ŁKS in Łódź lifted Nigeria to second place in Group F with four points, behind Spain, and earned the team a knockout-stage meeting with England, who topped Group E. The Round of 16 clash is scheduled for Thursday, September 17.
The result marked a dramatic turnaround for the Falconets, who had struggled to find the back of the net in their opening two matches. Nigeria began the tournament with a 2-0 defeat to Spain before playing out a goalless draw against China, leaving qualification in doubt heading into the final group fixture.
With their knockout hopes on the line, coach Moses Aduku’s side responded in emphatic fashion, racing into a four-goal lead before half-time and adding six more goals after the break.
Ramotalahi Kareem opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 17th minute before Rebecca Adegbemile doubled Nigeria’s advantage two minutes later.
Janet Seimeyeha Akekoromowei added the third in the 23rd minute, while Kareem struck again in the 27th minute to complete a first-half brace and give the Falconets a 4-0 lead at the interval.
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Nigeria continued to dominate after the restart, with substitute Winner Onajite David joining the scoring in the 60th minute.
Kareem completed her hat-trick in the 64th minute before Tosin Rafiu added the seventh goal in the 70th minute. Adegbemile then scored her second of the match four minutes later.
David returned to the scoresheet in the 75th minute to make it 9-0 before New Caledonia finally found a consolation goal through Joceline Kourevi in the 89th minute.
David completed her own hat-trick in stoppage time to round off a remarkable 10-1 victory for Nigeria.
The win is the biggest victory recorded by Nigeria at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, giving the Falconets a significant boost in goal difference, which proved decisive in determining their final position in Group F.
Nigeria and China both finished the group stage on four points. However, Nigeria advanced in second position because of their superior goal difference, while Spain topped the group with nine points after defeating China 3-1 in the other final Group F fixture.
The victory also ensured that Nigeria maintained their impressive record of reaching the knockout stage of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. The Falconets have been regular participants in the latter stages of the competition and have twice finished as runners-up, although they are still searching for their first world title.
For New Caledonia, the match brought an end to their historic debut at the U-20 Women’s World Cup. The Pacific island nation made history by qualifying for the tournament for the first time.
Despite the heavy defeat to Nigeria, Kourevi’s late goal provided a memorable moment for New Caledonia as the team recorded its first goal at the tournament.
The Falconets, meanwhile, will now turn their attention to England. The knockout fixture presents a significantly tougher challenge, with a place in the quarter-finals at stake.
Nigeria will enter the match with renewed confidence after scoring 10 goals in their final group game, while coach Aduku will be expected to build on the attacking display as the Falconets continue their bid to go all the way in Poland.
The dramatic victory has transformed what appeared to be a difficult group-stage campaign into another opportunity for Nigeria to make a deep run at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
Falconets Crush New Caledonia 10-1, Set Up England Clash
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Sports
‘Unacceptable’ — Arteta Furious Over Sunderland Penalty in Arsenal Win
‘Unacceptable’ — Arteta Furious Over Sunderland Penalty in Arsenal Win
Arsenal left the Stadium of Light with another three points, but Mikel Arteta was far from satisfied with one of the major refereeing decisions in the champions’ 2-0 win over Sunderland.
The turning point came early in the second half when Sunderland were awarded a penalty following a physical battle between Arsenal’s Ezri Konsa and Dan Ballard.
Although VAR reviewed the incident, the original decision stood. Arteta strongly disagreed, insisting that the footage showed no offence worthy of a penalty and warning that such calls could have serious consequences in a Premier League title race.
Sunderland had a chance to capitalise, but Raya came to Arsenal’s rescue. The goalkeeper guessed correctly to keep out Le Fée’s penalty and turned the ball onto the post.
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Arsenal needed only a short time to make the save count.
Guimarães, introduced at half-time, collected the ball outside the area and unleashed a curling strike that flew into the top corner. It was his first goal since joining Arsenal and gave the visitors the breakthrough they needed.
Sunderland refused to collapse and continued to test the visitors, but Arsenal’s defence survived the pressure. Saka then put the result beyond doubt from the spot in stoppage time after Reinildo was sent off for a second yellow card.
The victory means Arsenal have won all four of their Premier League matches this season, maintaining their flawless start and moving to 12 points.
For Arteta, however, the result did not erase his concerns about the penalty decision.
He argued that football’s extensive use of VAR should ensure such controversial calls are corrected, saying the incident was not acceptable at the highest level.
Arsenal ultimately had Raya’s heroics, Guimarães’ brilliance and a resilient defensive performance to thank for turning a potentially difficult night into another important victory.
‘Unacceptable’ — Arteta Furious Over Sunderland Penalty in Arsenal Win
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