Nigeria national under-23 football team
National association football team
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Nigeria national under-23 football team represents Nigeria in international football competitions in Olympic Games. The selection is limited to male players under the age of 23, except during the Olympic Games where the use of three overage players is allowed. The team is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation. In four appearances at the Olympic Games, the team has won gold in 1996, silver in 2008 and bronze in 2016.
NicknameDream Team VII or Olympic Eagles
AssociationNigeria Football Federation
Other affiliationNigeria Olympic Committee
| |||
| Nickname | Dream Team VII or Olympic Eagles | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Nigeria Football Federation | ||
| Other affiliation | Nigeria Olympic Committee | ||
| Confederation | CAF (Africa) | ||
| Sub-confederation | WAFU (West Africa) | ||
| Head coach | Eric Chelle | ||
| Captain | Azubuike Okechukwu | ||
| Top scorer | Junior Ajayi (10) | ||
| Home stadium | Stephen Keshi Stadium | ||
| FIFA code | NGA | ||
| |||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | 6 (first in 1968) | ||
| Best result | Gold Medal (1996) | ||
| AFCON U-23 | |||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 2011) | ||
| Best result | Champions (2015) | ||
| African Games | |||
| Appearances | 4 (first in 1973) | ||
| Best result | Gold Medal (1973) | ||
Medal record | |||
Competitive record
Olympic Games record
| Olympic Games | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appearances: 4 | ||||||||
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| Until 1988 | See Nigeria national football team | |||||||
 1992 | did not qualify | |||||||
 1996 | Gold Medal | 1st | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 6 |
 2000 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 10 |
 2004 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2008 | Silver Medal | 2nd | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 4 |
 2012 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2016 | Bronze Medal | 3rd | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 10 |
 2020 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2024 | ||||||||
| Total | Gold Medal | 4/8 | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 41 | 30 |
- Prior to the Barcelona 1992 campaign, the Football at the Summer Olympics was open to full senior national teams.
African Games record
| African Games | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
 1991 | Bronze Medal | 3rd | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 3 |
 1995 | Bronze Medal | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 |
 1999 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2003 | Silver Medal | 2nd | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 2 |
 2007 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2011 | ||||||||
 2015 | Bronze Medal | 3rd | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
 2019 |
See Nigeria national under-20 football team | |||||||
| Total | Gold Medal | 4/7 | 19 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 33 | '12 |
- Prior to the 1991 All-Africa Games campaign, the football tournament was open to full senior national teams.
- 2019 edition of the football tournament was played by the U-20 team.
U-23 Africa Cup of Nations record
| U-23 Africa Cup of Nations | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appearances: 2 | ||||||||
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| 2011 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 4 |
 2015 | Champions | 1st | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 5 |
| 2019 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 2023 | did not qualify | |||||||
| Total | Champions | 1/3 | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 11 |
Team honours and achievements
Intercontinental
Continental
Other
- Inter Continental Cup
- Winners: 2008
- Niger Tournament[1]
- Winners: 2002
- TIFOCO Tournament[2]
- Third-place: 2003
Players
Current squad
Squad for the 2023 Africa U-23 Cup of Nations qualifiers vs. Guinea[3]
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | John Amah | Sunshine Stars F.C. | ||||
| GK | Nurudeen Badmus | Dakkada | ||||
| GK | Ifeanyi Nchekwube | Akwa United | ||||
| GK | Oriya Joseph | Lobi Stars F.C. | ||||
| DF | Christopher Nwaeze |  Zorya Luhansk | ||||
| DF | Desmond Ojietefian | Shooting Stars | ||||
| DF | Okechukwu Chikason | Enyimba F.C. | ||||
| DF | Anthony Anieke | Akwa United | ||||
| DF | Samuel Olamilekan | Niger Tornadoes | ||||
| DF | Benjamin Tanimu | Bendel Insurance | ||||
| DF | Evans Ogbonda | 3 November 2002 | Port Harcourt City | |||
| DF | Umar Ahmed Farouk | Gombe United | ||||
| MF | Daniel Wotlai | Abia Warriors | ||||
| MF | Akanni Qudus | Remo Stars | ||||
| MF | Auwalu Naziru | Enugu Rangers | ||||
| MF | Chibuike Nwaiwu | Enyimba F.C. | ||||
| MF | Divine Nwachukwu | Bendel Insurance | ||||
| MF | Taofeek Malomo | Shooting Stars | ||||
| MF | Samuel Chisom | Kwara United | ||||
| MF | Samaila Sarki | Bendel Insurance | ||||
| MF | Kumaga Suur | Lobi Stars F.C. | ||||
| MF | Inye Green | Ibani United | ||||
| FW | Munir Idris | Niger Tornadoes | ||||
| FW | Ahmed Jimoh | Kwara United | ||||
| FW | Ezekiel Edidiong | 10 August 2001 | Remo Stars | |||
| FW | Ifeanyi Ogba | Akwa United | ||||
| FW | Umar Ibrahim | El-Kanemi Warriors | ||||
| FW | Alkasin Deji Yusuf | Dakkada | ||||
| FW | Mojereola Suleiman | Sunshine Stars F.C. | ||||
| FW | Akile Monday | Lobi Stars F.C. | ||||
Overage players in Olympic Games
| Tournament | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uche Okechukwu (DF) | Emmanuel Amunike (MF) | Daniel Amokachi (FW) | |
| Godwin Okpara (DF) | Garba Lawal (MF) | did not select | |
| Peter Odemwingie (FW) | did not select | ||
| Daniel Akpeyi (GK) | Mikel John Obi (MF) | did not select | |
Recent results
2019
| 10 September 2019 2019 U-23 AFCON Q | Nigeria | 5-0 |  Sudan | Stephen Keshi Stadium, Asaba |
| 16:00 UTC+1 | Report | Referee: Bangaly Konaté (Guinea) |
| 9 November 2019 2019 U-23 AFCON GS | Nigeria | 0-1 |  Ivory Coast | Al Salam Stadium, Cairo |
| 18:00 | Report | Referee: Mohamed Maarouf (Egypt) |
| 12 November 2019 2019 U-23 AFCON GS | Zambia  | 1-3 | Nigeria | Al Salam Stadium, Cairo |
| 21:00 |
|
Report | Referee: Slim Belkhouas (Tunisia) |
| 15 November 2019 2019 U-23 AFCON GS | Nigeria | 0-0 | South Africa | Al Salam Stadium, Cairo |
| 21:00 |
