Nigeria will miss out on a minimum preparation grant of $2.5 million after the Super Falcons failed to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
FIFA announced on Thursday that each of the 32 participating member associations would receive $2.5 million before December 2026 to prepare its national team for the tournament. The payment has been increased to the same level provided to countries that participated in the 2026 men’s World Cup.
The Nigeria Football Federation would have received the money had the Super Falcons qualified, but the nine-time African champions lost their place at the tournament following a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in the intercontinental play-off.
Nigeria’s absence ended the country’s record of appearing at every edition of the Women’s World Cup since the inaugural tournament in 1991.
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Although the NFF will not receive the preparation grant reserved for participating countries, Nigeria could still benefit from FIFA’s planned distributions to national teams that took part in the qualification pathway. Details of those payments will be discussed when the FIFA Council meets in December.
FIFA also approved increased financial distributions to players, football associations and clubs connected to the 2027 tournament. Players will receive improved minimum guaranteed payments, while clubs that release footballers for the competition will benefit through an expanded Club Benefits Programme.
The world football governing body said players competing in Brazil would receive the same service levels provided to their male counterparts at the 2026 World Cup. Any surplus generated by the tournament will also be distributed among the participating associations, with a specified amount reserved for players.
The Bureau of the FIFA Council also confirmed that the inaugural FIFA Women’s Club World Cup will be staged in the United States from January 5 to 30, 2028.
The 19-team competition will feature clubs from all six confederations, with Africa allocated three places. Qualification from CAF will be determined by a ranking of clubs that win the continent’s premier women’s competition between 2024 and 2027, with no limit on the number of qualifiers from one country.
Arsenal, Barcelona, Gotham FC, Corinthians, Club América, Naegohyang Women’s FC and Wuhan Jiangda have already secured places in the tournament.
The announcement offers Nigerian women’s clubs another route to FIFA’s global stage, but their chances will depend on their performances in the CAF Women’s Champions League over the next two seasons.
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