Six months after being appointed as coach of Nigeria’s national football team, Jose Peseiro has not received a single wage cheque from his employers. The 62-year-old, who took over as coach in May, has yet to file an official complaint with Nigeria’s Football Federation (NFF) about his salary not being paid.
In response, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), which is struggling financially and is supported by the Nigerian government, says it has come up with a plan to pay off the debts. The NFF already owes money to Gernot Rohr, the Portuguese’s predecessor, as well as players from its national teams.
Nigeria’s sports ministry, which assumed responsibility for paying Peseiro, blamed the delay on federal government funding processes.
Nigeria has won its only two competitive games under Peseiro, who previously guided Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, since missing out on a place in the 2022 World Cup in Africa’s playoffs in March. The Super Eagles beat Sierra Leone 2-1 and smashed Sao Tome and Principe 10-0 to get off to a perfect start in qualifying for the next Africa Cup of Nations, which will be held in Ivory Coast in early 2024.
It is not the first time that coaches have become entangled in Nigeria’s labyrinth of unpaid salaries. Christian Chukwu, Augustine Eguavoen, Samson Siasia, Sunday Oliseh, Florence Omagbemi, and the late Shaibu Amodu and Stephen Keshi are among the coaches who are reportedly said to have gone without compensation for an extended period of time.
The NFF is still owes overdue bonuses to players from both the men’s and women’s senior national teams. Players on the Super Eagles are upset about unpaid bonuses and allowances dating back to 2021, while the Super Falcons are still waiting for the NFF and Sports Ministry to settle outstanding obligations from the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON). Because they hadn’t been paid their bonuses and allowances, the women’s team skipped training in July before their WAFCON third-place play-off against Zambia.