The Super Eagles’ failure to scale the semifinal hurdles of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Wednesday night in Rabat, Morocco, brought to the fore their unbroken jinx in the tournament. The Super Eagles have never defeated a host nation in an AFCON knockout match (excluding third-place playoffs), and many Nigerians were hoping to see an end to the jinx on Wednesday. At Algiers ’90, the Super Eagles lost 1-0 to Algeria in the final. At Tunisia 2004, the Super Eagles’ encounter with the host, Tunisia, ended 1–1 in the semifinal, but Tunisia won 5–3 on penalties. And at the last AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire, the Super Eagles lost 1-2 to the host in the final.

Source: The Guardian January 15, 2026 14:02 UTC