Sports in Nigeria

Nigeria has made its mark in global sports competition. Its national soccer team, the Super Eagles, is adjudged the best in Africa and one of the best ten in the world. Nigeria won the first World Cup in the under-16 category in China in 1985 and came second in the same category two years later in Canada.

Its Under-20 soccer team won the bronze medal in the Junior World Cup competition in the Soviet Union in 1985 and the silver medal in Saudi Arabia in 1989. In the 1994 World Cup competition, Nigeria led its group to qualify for the second round.

In professional boxing, Nigeria has produced three world champions (Hogan "Kid" Bassey (featherweight, 1957-1959); Dick Tiger, (middleweight, 1962-1963) and Massachusetts resident, Bash Ali (cruiserweight, 1987).

Nigeria's athletes have also won Olympic medals in long jump, 400 x 4 relay and several other track and field events.

Dozens of Nigerians are today professional athletes in Europe and America. A Nigerian based in the US, Hakeem Olajuwon, is today roundly adjudged the best basketball player in the world.

Nigeria which has an interesting and wonderful sports history will bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games despite crippling problems with infrastructure and facilities. The country believes that by hosting the 2012 Olympics it will open a new chapter in the field of sports on the African continent.  

London is among the possible opponents to any Nigerian bid, but the African nation has plenty more obstacles to overcome.

Nigeria has only hosted two big sporting events in its history - the Africa Games in 1973 and the World Youth Cup in 1999. It had also hosted the 2003 Africa Games. 

Nigeria had built an ultra-modern, all-seater 60,000 capacity stadium and a Games village in Abuja, its capital for the event, scheduled for 4-18 October, 2003. Around 6,000 athletes from 54 countries had competed in 22 disciplines.