Nigeria U-17 head coach Manu Garba has called on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to allocate additional slots to the West African Football Union (WAFU) Zone B after Nigeria's Golden Eaglets defeated host Ghana to secure third place in the 2024 WAFU B AFCON Championship.
The WAFU Zone B AFCON, held in Ghana, served as a qualification tournament for the 2025 U-17 AFCON with the finalists of this tournament expected to compete at the biennial U-17 AFCON, where the top four teams will earn spots in the FIFA U-17 World Cup.
The FIFA U-17 World Cup has been expanded to include 48 teams, with Africa expected to provide ten representatives from the U-17 AFCON for next year's tournament in Qatar.
With the expansion of the 2025 U-17 FIFA World Cup from 24 to 48 teams, Africa's representation will increase to nine or ten teams instead of the previous four.
WAFU B U-17 AFCON is awaiting confirmation from CAF regarding the number of teams that will qualify for the 2025 U-17 AFCON. Nigeria and Ghana could secure qualification if CAF decides to allocate two additional slots to WAFU.
Speaking at the post-match press conference after the victory over Ghana, Golden Eaglets manager Manu Garba advocated for four teams from WAFU Zone B to qualify for the U-17 AFCON.
Garba emphasized that Nigeria is the most successful team in FIFA U-17 World Cup history, with Ghana ranking third since the competition began in 1985.
"We have communicated with the Federation. They know that we started late, and I believe we will prepare very well for the Africa Cup of Nations," Garba said.
"Ten countries are going to represent Africa in the World Cup. So I believe CAF will do well to take all four nations from this tournament. Why? Because West Africa (WAFU) B is the stronghold of African football."
Garba highlighted that Nigeria is ranked number one globally at the U-17 level, followed by Brazil and then Ghana. "We also have Côte d’Ivoire, who have won bronze," he added. "Even Niger. Why shouldn’t CAF give us four slots from this zone? I think it’s imperative for the WAFU officials to follow up on this."
"I cannot imagine playing an AFCON without Ghana or Nigeria," Garba concluded.