The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has announced that it has reached an agreement with German coach Bruno Labbadia to take over as the Head Coach of Nigeria’s Senior Men’s National Team, the Super Eagles.
In a statement made early Tuesday, NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, said, “The NFF Executive Committee has approved the recommendation of its Technical and Development Sub-Committee to appoint Mr. Bruno Labbadia as the Head Coach of the Super Eagles, with immediate effect.”
Born on February 8, 1966, in Darmstadt, Germany, Labbadia had a notable playing career, earning two caps for Germany and playing for clubs such as Darmstadt 98, Hamburger SV, FC Kaiserslautern, Bayern Munich, FC Cologne, Werder Bremen, Armenia Bielefeld, and Karlsruher SC. He won the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich in 1994.
As a coach, Labbadia has managed prominent clubs like Hertha Berlin, VfB Stuttgart, VfL Wolfsburg, Hamburger SV, and Bayer Leverkusen. He holds a UEFA Pro License.
Labbadia is the sixth German to coach the Super Eagles, following in the footsteps of Karl-Heinz Marotzke (who had two stints between 1970 and 1974), Gottlieb Göller (1981), Manfred Höner (1988-1989), Berti Vogts (2007-2008), and Gernot Rohr (2016-2021). Notably, Höner led the team to a runner-up finish at the 1988 Africa Cup of Nations, while Rohr guided Nigeria to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Labbadia’s immediate task will be to lead the three-time African champions in two crucial 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin Republic on Saturday, September 7, in Uyo, and against Rwanda on Tuesday, September 10, in Kigali.
Four additional matches to complete the qualifying campaign will follow in October and November.
LIST OF SUPER EAGLES’ COACHES IN HISTORY
John Finch (England) – 1949
Daniel Anyiam (Nigeria) – 1954-1956; 1964-1965
Les Courtier (England) – 1956-1960
Moshe Beit Halevi (Israel) – 1960-1961
George Vardar (Hungary) – 1961-1963
Joey Blackwell (England) – 1963 – 1964
József Ember (Hungary) – 1965-1968
Sabino Barinaga (Spain) – 1968-1969
Peter ‘Eto’ Amaechina (Nigeria) – 1969-1970
Karl-Heinz Marotzke (Germany) – 1970-1971; 1974
Jorge Penna (Brazil) – 1972-1973
Jelisavčić ‘Father Tiko’ Tihomir (Yugoslavia) – 1974-1978
Otto Glória (Brazil) – 1979-1982
Gottlieb Göller (Germany) – 1981
Adegboye Onigbinde (Nigeria) – 1983-1984; 2002
Chris Udemezue (Nigeria) – 1984-1986
Patrick Ekeji (Nigeria) – 1985
Paul Hamilton (Nigeria) – 1987; 1989
Manfred Höner (Germany) – 1988-1989
Clemens Westerhof (Netherlands) – 1989-1994
Amodu Shaibu (Nigeria) – 1994-1995; 1996-1997; 2001-2002; 2008-2010
Johannes Bonfrere (Netherlands) – 1995-1996; 1999-2001
Philippe Troussier (France) – 1997
Monday Sinclair (Nigeria) – 1997-1998
Bora Milutinović (Yugoslavia) – 1998
Thijs Libregts (Netherlands) – 1999
Christian Chukwu (Nigeria) – 2002-2005
Augustine Eguavoen (Nigeria) – 2005-2007; 2010; 2022
Berti Vogts (Germany) – 2007-2008
Lars Lagerbäck (Sweden) – 2010
Samson Siasia (Nigeria) – 2010-2011; 2016
Stephen Keshi (Nigeria) – 2011-2014; 2015
Sunday Oliseh (Nigeria) – 2015-2016
Gernot Rohr (Germany) – 2016-2021
José Peseiro (Portugal) – 2022-2024
Finidi George (Nigeria) – 2024
Bruno Labbadia (Germany) – 2024-?
