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The Nigeria Football Federation’s (NFF) plan to appoint Coach Bruno Labbadia as the Head Coach of the Super Eagles has collapsed due to stringent tax regulations imposed by German authorities according to soccer ruling body in Nigeria.
The disagreement over who would bear the burden of Labbadia’s taxes led to the termination of the agreement.
“We’ve been negotiating this tax issue for the past three days,” NFF President Ibrahim Musa Gusau revealed. “There was no way we could agree to cover the additional tax percentage, which ranges from 32% to 40% of his salary, on top of the agreed monthly wage. The tax details were not part of our initial discussions, and he had agreed to all terms before this issue arose. Despite our efforts to be flexible, Labbadia insisted that the NFF cover the full tax amount, which we simply cannot afford.”
Following the breakdown in negotiations, the NFF announced that Technical Director Augustine Eguavoen will take charge of the Super Eagles for their upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying matches against Benin Republic on September 7th in Uyo, and Rwanda on September 10th in Kigali.
This will mark Eguavoen’s fourth stint as head coach of the Super Eagles, having previously led the team in 2005-2007, 2010, and 2022.
