By Obiako Chris Okechukwu on June 24, 2026

 To imply that millions of Super Eagles supporters who have been forced to watch 48 countries from across the world square up against each other in the ongoing FIFA World Cup Finals in USA, Canada and Mexico, are not happy, is an understatement.

As they gnash their teeth and lament the absence of their favourite stars like Ademola Lookman, Victor Osihmen, Alex Iwobi and others, the least the fans are requesting is to be left alone.

But 22‑year‑old defender Ime Okon, who represents the South Africa national team, would not allow sleeping dogs lie.

 While explaining why he chose to play for South Africa instead of Nigeria, despite being eligible for both nations, the Hannover 90 defender has touched the lion's tail.

Speaking about his international allegiance, Okon said South Africa means everything to him, and that he has never known any other country.

"South Africa is everything to me. I don’t know anything besides South Africa. South Africa is my home," he stated vehemently

Ime Okon was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, to a South African mother and a Nigerian father. He holds dual citizenship, but his football identity and upbringing have always been rooted in South Africa. Nigerian fans have, however, lambasted him for what they termed "arrogance." 

According to Francis Ditimiya, a die-hard Super Eagles supporter, Ime Okon over-stepped his boundary. "Ime Okon has the right to play for any nation of his choice, but he doesn't have to remind us of what we're missing. If he insists that South Africa is all has, let him not step his foot on Nigeria."

Ronaldo earns more than three World Cup teams combined

 Cristiano Ronaldo has spent the vast majority of his career breaking records, but perhaps the most astonishing metric attached to his name in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Finals has absolutely nothing to do with goals or silverware.

The Portuguese icon earns a staggering €208.4 million per year at Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr. To put that astronomical figure into perspective, Ronaldo's annual salary alone comfortably exceeds the combined market value of the entire national squads of Qatar, Jordan, and Iraq - three countries competing in this year's FIFA World Cup Finals.

Nigeria's Opabunmi, named among youngest players ever to appear at the FIFA World Cup Finals 

Mexico’s win over South Africa in the opening fixture of the 2026 World Cup saw the tournament’s youngest player feature.

 Gilberto Mora came on as a second-half substitute at the electric Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, as the co-hosts got off to a dream start with a 2-0 win.

The 17-year-old became the youngest Mexican ever to feature at a World Cup , and is no stranger to breaking records. Mora is the youngest scorer in Liga MX history and the youngest-ever debutant for the Mexico national team.

It's no longer news that Nigeria's Super Eagles are not part of the hostilities at this year's Mundial. However, their teeming fans will take consolation in the fact that Femi Opabunmi, who was part of the Nigerian team to the FIFA World Cup Finals in Japan and Korea 2002, made the list of the youngest ever players in World Cup history.

Youngest players in FIFA World Cup history

1. Norman Whiteside (Northern Ireland) 17 years, 1 month and 10 days

2. Samuel Eto' Fils (Cameroon) 17 years, 3 months and 7 days.

3. Femi Opabunmi (Nigeria) 17 years, 3 months and 9 days.

4. Salomon Olembe (Cameroon) 17 years, 6 months and 3 days.

5. Pele (Brazil) 17 years, 7 months, and 23 days.

6. Gilberto Mora (Mexico) 17 years, 7 months, and 23 days.

Nigeria keep counting their World Cup losses as English clubs top list of clubs benefitting from FIFA World Cup Finals windfall

No single Nigerian football club will benefit from millions of dollars being distributed by FIFA officials to clubs whose players are participating in this year's Mundial.

While English Premier League have more players at this World Cup than at any previous edition of the tournament, club officials, their Nigerian counterparts are chasing shadows.

Across the 20 clubs in the top flight in 2025/26, plus newly-promoted trio Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Hull City, there are 182 players representing their country in North America.

Since the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, FIFA has paid clubs for releasing their players to represent their countries at the tournament as part of the FIFA Club Benefits Programme.

The money comes from revenue generated from the World Cup, with the governing body pledging to pay clubs across the planet $355m (approximately £267m) in total for this summer’s edition, up from $209m (£157m) for Qatar 2022.

The longer Harry Kane stays at the tournament with England, the more that his club, Bayern Munich, will earn

The amount has sky-rocketed because this is the first World Cup cycle that FIFA will also compensate clubs for their players being involved in qualifying matches, which comprises $100m of the overall pot.

It is also the first time the World Cup has featured 48 teams, up from 32, which means more games and a longer tournament.

Payments are calculated on a “per player, per day” metric, which divides the total amount of money allocated by the total number of days spent at the World Cup by all of the players involved. All players are treated equally, so someone who plays 90 minutes of every match for their country will ‘cost’ FIFA the same as a team-mate who doesn’t make it off the bench.

For the 2026 tournament, clubs will earn $5,000 (£3,730) for every day that each of their stars spends at the World Cup, starting from May 25 - the date they had to release players to join their national squad, according to FIFA - right up until the day after their country's final match.

That means the players whose countries reach the final on July 19 will earn their clubs $285,000 (£214,000), as they will have been away for 57 days. The total rises further when counting qualifying matches, for which clubs earn $2,362 (£1,779) per day.

Barcelona were the second-highest earners at the 2022 World Cup

Therefore, a club like Manchester City - who have 19 players at the finals, including many with nations who are expected to progress to the latter stages - stand to earn millions from this World Cup.

City received the highest share from the 2022 finals of any club on the planet, taking home almost $4.6m (£3.4m) as a result of their players’ participation in Qatar. They earned slightly more than Barcelona ($4.5m), while Manchester United ($3.3m) and Chelsea ($3.2m) were the next highest-ranked Premier League teams.

Overall, English clubs received a whopping $37.7m (£28.4m) from the Qatar World Cup, with FIFA distributing the payments after the tournament via the member association, in this case the FA.

With both the total amount paid and the number of Premier League players at the World Cup rising further this summer, English clubs can expect an even bigger windfall to come their way soon.

Source DailySports Nigeria

Posted June 24, 2026

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