Nigeria women's national football team
Encyclopedia
The Nigeria national women's football team, nicknamed the Super Falcons, is the national team of Nigeria
and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation. They won the first seven African championships
and have lost only five games in their history to African competition: December 12, 2002 to Ghana in Warri, June 3, 2007 at Algeria
, August 12, 2007 to Ghana in an Olympic qualifier, November 25, 2008 at Equatorial Guinea
in the semis of the 2008 Women's African Football Championship
and May 2011 at Ghana in an All Africa Games qualification match.
But the Super Falcons have been unable to dominate beyond Africa in such arenas as the FIFA Women's World Cup
or the Olympic Games. The team has been to every World Cup since 1991, but managed just once to finish in the top eight. In 2003, the Super Falcons turned out to be the biggest disappointment of the first round, failing to score a single goal and losing all three Group A matches. They did little better in 2007, drawing only one of their Group B matches. However, it must also be noted in their defense that they faced the group of death
in both 2003 and 2007, grouped both times with rising Asian
power North Korea
, traditional European
power Sweden
, and a historic women's superpower in the USA
.
Nigeria hosted the African women’s championship finals for the third time in 2006, replacing Gabon
, which was initially granted the right to host but later pulled out citing financial difficulties, and won it for the seventh time in a row. Nigeria’s Super Falcons and Ghana’s Black Queens
represented Africa in China for the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The "Falconets" are the country’s junior team, which performed creditably in Russia 2006 when they beat Finland
8–0 before they were sent packing by Brazil. They were runner-up to Germany at the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
.
The "Flamingoes" are the country’s cadet team (U-17), which qualified for the inaugural women's U-17 World Cup New Zealand 2008
.
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation. They won the first seven African championships
CAF Women's Championship
The African Women's Championship is a biennial competition in women's football for national teams which belong to the Confederation of African Football . Nine tournaments have been held, with the current champions being Nigeria...
and have lost only five games in their history to African competition: December 12, 2002 to Ghana in Warri, June 3, 2007 at Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, August 12, 2007 to Ghana in an Olympic qualifier, November 25, 2008 at Equatorial Guinea
Equatorial Guinea women's national football team
The Equatorial Guinea women's national football team is the women's national team for Equatorial Guinea. Their nickname is the Nzalang Nacional.They defeated South Africa 2–1 in an Olympic Games Qualifier on February 18, 2007, but lost the return leg 4–2...
in the semis of the 2008 Women's African Football Championship
2008 Women's African Football Championship
The 2008 Women's African Football Championship is of 15-29 November 2008 in Equatorial Guinea. The central African country is the first time host the tournament. Eight national teams played in group matches and then against each other.-Qualifying Tournament:...
and May 2011 at Ghana in an All Africa Games qualification match.
But the Super Falcons have been unable to dominate beyond Africa in such arenas as the FIFA Women's World Cup
FIFA Women's World Cup
The FIFA Women's World Cup is an international association football competition contested by the senior women's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the...
or the Olympic Games. The team has been to every World Cup since 1991, but managed just once to finish in the top eight. In 2003, the Super Falcons turned out to be the biggest disappointment of the first round, failing to score a single goal and losing all three Group A matches. They did little better in 2007, drawing only one of their Group B matches. However, it must also be noted in their defense that they faced the group of death
Group of death
A group of death in a multi-stage tournament is a group which is unusually competitive, because the number of strong competitors in the group is greater than the number of qualifying places available for the next phase of the tournament...
in both 2003 and 2007, grouped both times with rising Asian
Asian Football Confederation
The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football in Asia. It has 46 member countries, mostly located on the Asian continent. However, due to the disputed boundary of Europe and Asia, nations such as Russia and Turkey which are located mostly in geographic Asia are...
power North Korea
Korea DPR women's national football team
The Democratic People's Republic of Korea women's national football team represents North Korea in international women's football. North Korea were the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship winners, and won the AFC Women's Asian Cup in 2001, 2003 and 2008....
, traditional European
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
power Sweden
Sweden women's national football team
Sweden women's national football team are a football team officially representing Sweden in women's football. They won the unofficial European Championships in 1984, a success the team has not managed to repeat, it has however won one World Cup-silver as well as three European Cup-silvers...
, and a historic women's superpower in the USA
United States women's national soccer team
The United States women's national soccer team represents the United States in international soccer competition and is controlled by U.S. Soccer. The U.S. team won the first ever Women's World Cup in 1991, and has since been a superpower in women's soccer. It is currently ranked first in the world...
.
Nigeria hosted the African women’s championship finals for the third time in 2006, replacing Gabon
Gabon
Gabon , officially the Gabonese Republic is a state in west central Africa sharing borders with Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, and with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. The Gulf of Guinea, an arm of the Atlantic Ocean is to the west...
, which was initially granted the right to host but later pulled out citing financial difficulties, and won it for the seventh time in a row. Nigeria’s Super Falcons and Ghana’s Black Queens
Ghana women's national football team
The Ghana national women's football team, is the national team of Ghana and is controlled by the Ghana Football Association. They are nicknamed the Black Queens.-World Cup record:-Performance in Summer Olympics:*FIFA: Women's Olympic Football:...
represented Africa in China for the 2007 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The "Falconets" are the country’s junior team, which performed creditably in Russia 2006 when they beat Finland
Finland women's national football team
The Finland women's national football team represents Finland in international women's football. The team, controlled by the Football Association of Finland , reached the semi-finals of the 2005 European Championship, surprising the female football world having drawn with Sweden and beaten Denmark...
8–0 before they were sent packing by Brazil. They were runner-up to Germany at the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
The 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was held in Germany from July 13 to August 1. Sixteen teams, comprising representatives from all six confederations, were taking part in the final competition, in which Germany had a guaranteed place as the host nation....
.
The "Flamingoes" are the country’s cadet team (U-17), which qualified for the inaugural women's U-17 World Cup New Zealand 2008
2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup
-Group B:---------------------Group C:---------------------Group D:---------------------Knockout stage:All times local -Quarterfinals:-----------------Semifinals:---------3rd Place Playoff:----...
.
World Cup record
| World Cup Finals | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | GF | GA | GD | |
 1991 |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | ||
 1995 |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 14 | ||
 1999 |
Quarter-Finals | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 12 | ||
| 2003 |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 11 | ||
| 2007 |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | ||
 2011 |
Group Stage | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ||
 20152015 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup will be the seventh FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international women's football world championship tournament... |
To Be Determined | ||||||||
| Total | 6/6 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 15 | 50 | ||
Olympics record
| Year | Result | Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 Football at the 1996 Summer Olympics The association football competition at the 1996 Summer Olympics was held in Birmingham, Alabama; Washington, D.C; Orlando, Florida; Miami, Florida; and Athens, Georgia.... |
Did Not Qualify | |||||||
 2000Football at the 2000 Summer Olympics The football tournament at the 2000 Summer Olympics was the 20th official Olympic football tournament. A women's tournament was held for the second time.-Medal winners:-Venues:*Olympic Stadium, Sydney*Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney*Bruce Stadium, Canberra... |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 9 | |
 2004 |
Quarter-Finals | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 2008 Football at the 2008 Summer Olympics Football at the 2008 Summer Olympics was held in Beijing and several other cities in the People's Republic of China from 6 August to 23 August. Associations affiliated with FIFA were invited to send their full women's national teams and men's U-23 teams to participate... |
Group Stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | |
 2012Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics Football at the 2012 Summer Olympics is scheduled to be held in London and several other cities in the United Kingdom, from 25 July to 11 August. The finals will be played at Wembley Stadium. Associations affiliated with FIFA are invited to send their full women's national teams and men's U-23... |
Did Not Qualify | |||||||
| Total | 3/4 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 7 | 18 | |
Performance in Africa Women's Championship
| CAF Women's Championship CAF Women's Championship The African Women's Championship is a biennial competition in women's football for national teams which belong to the Confederation of African Football . Nine tournaments have been held, with the current champions being Nigeria... |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | GP | W | D | L | GS | GA |
| 1991 1991 Women's African Football Championship The 1991 Women's African Football Championship was the first staging of the CAF Women's Championship. It determined the CAF's single qualifier for the FIFA Women's World Cup 1991 — the winner Nigeria.... |
Champions | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 2 |
| 1995 1995 Women's African Football Championship The 1995 Women's African Football Championship was the second staging of the CAF Women's Championship. It determined the CAF's single qualifier for the FIFA Women's World Cup 1995 — the winner Nigeria.... |
Champions | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 2 |
 19981998 Women's African Football Championship The 1998 Women's African Football Championship was the third staging of the CAF Women's Championship. It determined the CAF's two qualifiers for the FIFA Women's World Cup 1999 — the winner Nigeria and the runner-up Ghana... |
Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 |
 20002000 Women's African Football Championship The 2000 Women's African Football Championship was the fourth staging of the CAF Women's Championship. The tournament took place in South Africa.-Group A:-------------------------Group B:----------------------------... |
Champions | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 2002 2002 Women's African Football Championship The 2002 Women's African Football Championship was the fifth staging of the CAF Women's Championship. It determined the CAF's two qualifiers for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2003 — the winner Nigeria and the runner-up Ghana... |
Champions | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 2 |
| 2004 2004 Women's African Football Championship The 2004 Women's African Football Championship was held in South Africa between 18 September and 3 October 2004. The tournament was won by Nigeria.-Qualifying Tournament:... |
Champions | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 2 |
| 2006 2006 Women's African Football Championship The 2006 Women's African Football Championship was originally scheduled to be held in Gabon, but due to "organisational reasons" Gabon withdrew from hosting the competition. Nigeria took over hosting rights, hosted the final tournament between October 28 and November 11, and won the tournament... |
Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 2 |
 20082008 Women's African Football Championship The 2008 Women's African Football Championship is of 15-29 November 2008 in Equatorial Guinea. The central African country is the first time host the tournament. Eight national teams played in group matches and then against each other.-Qualifying Tournament:... |
Third Place | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| 2010 2010 African Women's Football Championship The 2010 Women's African Football Championship was held in South Africa from 31 October to 14 November 2010. Seven national teams joined the host nation following a series of knock-out home and away ties... |
Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 4 |
| Total | 8 Titles | 47 | 40 | 5 | 2 | 167 | 19 |