Bruno Labbadia has been appointed as the new coach of Nigeria

Bruno Labbadia, a former German international, has been appointed as Nigeria’s new coach, marking the third appointment to the position this year.

On Tuesday, the Nigeria Football Federation announced his appointment on social media, stating that it was effective immediately. However, the organization did not provide any information regarding the duration of the contract.

Labbadia assumes responsibility for Nigeria’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign 12 days prior to their Group D home match against their neighbors, Benin, in Uyo. Three days later, the team also plays an away game in Rwanda.

The 58-year-old is a seasoned Bundesliga coach who has held positions at Bayer Leverkusen, Hamburg, VfB Stuttgart, VfL Wolfsburg, and Hertha Berlin. This will be his initial employment opportunity outside of Germany.

He succeeds Finidi George, who served as the referee for four matches earlier this year.

Labbadia, who has earned two caps for his country and has played as a striker for Bayern Munich and other clubs, will dedicate the remainder of the year to qualifying the Super Eagles for the upcoming Cup of Nations finals, which will be held in Morocco in late 2025.

Nigeria is the top seed in a division that also includes Libya, with the top two teams qualifying.

Subsequently, Nigeria will recommence World Cup qualifying in March, rendering the German’s obligations considerably more demanding.

They are currently fifth out of six teams in African qualifying Group C and have not won any of their first four games. However, they still have six more matches to play in order to secure a spot in the 2026 finals in North America.

Nigeria has had an unexpectedly terrible start to the year, particularly in comparison to the impressive performance it exhibited in reaching the Cup of Nations final in the Ivory Coast at the beginning of the year.

Despite their most impressive performance at the two-yearly African championship since winning the Cup of Nations in 2013, their Portuguese coach, Jose Peseiro, was not offered a contract renewal and departs promptly following the tournament.

Nigeria has employed a lengthy roster of foreign coaches, such as former German World Cup winner Berti Vogts, well-traveled Serb Bora Milutinovic, and Brazilian Otto Gloria. However, the position is regarded as one of the most challenging in African sport due to the regular administrative snags and the demanding supporters.

Nigeria has qualified for six of the last eight World Cups and has won the African championship three times. However, they were unable to participate in the most recent finals in Qatar in 2022..