Former Super Falcons head coach Randy Waldrum has called on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to account for the $960,000 he says FIFA disbursed to all participating nations in October 2022 to prepare for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
In a video that has gone viral on social media, Waldrum accused the federation of failing to organise a proper pre-tournament training camp despite receiving the grant.
“I have a real close contact here in the US that is very connected with some of the board at FIFA.
“This person told me that in October, every country was given $960,000 from FIFA to prepare for the World Cup. Where is that money?” he asked.
Waldrum criticised what he described as poor planning around the team’s October 2022 friendly in Japan, saying the logistics left his squad physically exhausted.
“We went to Japan, we flew in, played the game, and went home. Some of our players didn’t arrive until the morning before the game. Five players who were going to start for me arrived the night before, after travelling 16 hours. We wasted the last five days of that window to train,” he said.
He also raised concerns about the size and capacity of Nigeria’s technical staff, insisting the federation had failed to meet standards permitted by FIFA. According to him, FIFA allows teams to travel with up to 22 technical personnel, yet Nigeria’s contingent included only about 11.
Waldrum further argued that FIFA allows business-class travel and later deducts the cost from federations’ prize money, insisting there was no justification for inadequate travel arrangements or poorly organised training camps.
While his allegations reignited debate over the team’s preparation, records showed that the Super Falcons did participate in various activities before the World Cup. They played international friendlies against the USA in August 2022, Japan in October 2022, and Mexico in February 2023.
The team also camped in Turkey in April 2023, where they defeated New Zealand 3–0 and Haiti 2–1, and later held a training tour on the Gold Coast in Australia from July 4 to 11, playing a friendly against Lions FC before moving to their official FIFA camp in Brisbane.
Despite the concerns raised by their former coach, the Super Falcons went on to deliver one of their most impressive World Cup runs in recent years. They held Canada and Ireland to goalless draws, defeated co-hosts Australia 3–2 in a dramatic encounter, and progressed to the Round of 16, where they lost 4–2 on penalties to eventual finalists England after a tense 0–0 draw.
The NFF has not yet issued an official response to Waldrum’s renewed allegations.
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