The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has appointed former Super Eagles head coach Augustine Eguavoen as interim head coach of the Super Falcons ahead of their 2028 Olympic Games qualifying campaign.
Eguavoen will take charge of the senior women’s national team for their second-round, two-legged Olympic qualifying ties against Comoros in October, while the NFF continues its search for a substantive head coach.
The appointment follows the departure of Justine Madugu and his technical crew after Nigeria’s disappointing campaign at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations and subsequent failure to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Eguavoen, popularly known as “Cerezo”, brings considerable international coaching experience to the assignment. He previously led the Super Eagles to a bronze-medal finish at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.
He will be assisted by Christopher Danjuma, the head coach of Nigeria Women’s Football League side Nasarawa Amazons. Danjuma has extensive experience with Nigeria’s women’s national teams and led the Falconets at the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica.
Former Super Eagles goalkeeper trainer Olatunji Baruwa has also been appointed as goalkeeper trainer, while former Super Falcons defender and coach Ayisat Yusuf will serve as an assistant coach.
Yusuf earned 68 international caps for Nigeria and represented the country at four Women’s Africa Cup of Nations tournaments, three FIFA Women’s World Cups and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
The Super Falcons, who are 10-time African champions, will begin their Olympic qualifying campaign in the second round against Comoros.
Both legs of the tie will be played at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne-Remo on October 9 and 13, 2026. Nigeria received a bye into the second round as one of the three highest-ranked teams in the qualifying competition.
Comoros reached the second round after defeating Sudan 30-0 on aggregate.
The Super Falcons must progress through four rounds of two-legged knockout ties to secure one of Africa’s two available places in the women’s football tournament at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
If Nigeria defeat Comoros, they will advance to the third round, scheduled for February 23 to March 6, 2027, where they will face either the Democratic Republic of Congo or Morocco.
The fourth round is scheduled for October 4–12, 2027, while the final round will take place from November 23 to December 4, 2027.
For Eguavoen, the assignment represents a new challenge after years of involvement with the men’s national teams. His immediate task will be to steady the Falcons and guide them past Comoros as Nigeria begins its long route to the 2028 Olympics.
The NFF has stressed that the appointment is interim, with the federation continuing its search for a permanent head coach for the Super Falcons.
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