Nigeria hires German coach Bruno Labbadia in a bid to get World Cup qualifying back on track
LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria hired German coach Bruno Labbadia on Tuesday to lead the men’s national soccer team in a bid to get its flagging World Cup qualifying campaign back on track.
“The appointment is with immediate effect,” said Mohammed Sanusi, the general secretary of the Nigeria Football Federation.
The 58-year-old Labbadia has been out of work since April 2023 when he was fired by Stuttgart after failing to arrest its slide to the bottom of the Bundesliga.
Nigeria is second from bottom in its 2026 World Cup qualifying group after failing to win any of its opening four games.
The Super Eagles drew 1-1 with both Lesotho and Zimbabwe in November last year before Portuguese coach José Peseiro led the team to the final of the Africa Cup of Nations. Nigeria lost the final to host nation Ivory Coast in February.
The NFF promoted Peseiro’s assistant, Finidi George, to the top position in April after the Portuguese departed, but the former right winger was unable to improve the team's fortunes in World Cup qualifying.
George oversaw a 1-1 draw with South Africa followed by a 2-1 defeat in Benin in June. George then reportedly resigned after not being told of the NFF's plans to appoint a technical advisor to oversee his work. The NFF did not publicly acknowledge the resignation.
Labbadia only oversaw two wins from his 12 games in charge of Stuttgart during his second stint at the club — one each in the league and German Cup.
His successor, Sebastian Hoeneß, ultimately saved Stuttgart from relegation and led the team to a club-record points total last season.
Labbadia previously coached Hertha Berlin, Wolfsburg, Hamburger SV, Bayer Leverkusen and Darmstadt. As a goal-scoring forward, he helped Bayern Munich and Kaiserslautern win Bundesliga titles in the 1990s.
Labbadia’s first two games in charge of Nigeria will be in 2025 Africa Cup qualifying against Benin and Rwanda on Sept. 7 and 10, respectively.
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