Nigeria’s victorious U-17 women’s national team, the Flamingos, arrived in Abuja on Monday morning with the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup trophy after defeating Japan in Saturday’s final in Morocco.
Officials of the Nigeria Football Federation and supporters received the team at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, where the players were welcomed with a brass band and posed for photographs with fans before boarding their team bus.
The Flamingos secured their first title in the competition with a 2-1 victory over Japan in the final in Rabat.
Awawu Bashiru opened the scoring for Nigeria before Oluebube Umejiaku netted the winning goal to seal the historic triumph. Umejiaku also won the tournament’s Golden Ball award.
The victory made Nigeria the first African country to win the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup and the first African team to claim a FIFA Women’s World Cup title at any age level.
The achievement followed a remarkable campaign in which the Flamingos recovered from an opening defeat to Poland to reach the final and lift the trophy.
Before travelling to Morocco, the team had also won the 2026 WAFU-B U-17 Girls Cup in Côte d’Ivoire, recording five victories in five matches, scoring 17 goals and conceding only once.
Speaking after the team’s return, head coach Akeem Busari said determination, dedication and discipline were essential to achieving success.
“They have to have the three Ds: determination, dedication and discipline,” Busari said.
He also urged young players to work towards their ambitions rather than simply imagining success.
“And equally, all the feats you really want to achieve should not just be in your mind. Work towards achieving them,” he added.