Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

is the most popular sport in

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

, a nation of over 26 million.

International

Despite the sport's popularity in the country, Niger have so far been rather unsuccessful in international football, never winning a major tournament and failing to qualify for any

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

finals, though they did reach the quarterfinals of qualifying for the

1982 World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain from 13 June to 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy, who defeated West Germany 3–1 in th ...

, losing to

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. They either failed to qualify for or were forced to withdraw from every

African Nations Cup The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

between 1969 and 2010. Niger finally participated in the competition for the first time in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

after topping a qualifying group that included

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. Later that year, they defeated Guinea over two legs to reach the

2013 Africa Cup of Nations The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange S.A., Orange Africa Cup of Nations South Africa 2013 for sponsorship reasons, held from 19 January to 10 February 2013, was the 29th Africa Cup of Nations, the Association football, footbal ...

. On both occasions, Niger finished bottom of their group, gaining a solitary point in 2013. They have been unable to qualify for any subsequent edition of the tournament, despite the competition's expansion from 16 teams to 24 from

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

onwards. As of 2023, there are no Nigerien nationals playing with top level European clubs. In the 2000s, a handful of Nigerien internationals have played in Europe including

Moussa Yahaya Moussa Yahaya (born 4 January 1975) is a Nigerien retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He represented the Niger national team on sixteen occasions. Football career Born in Agadez, Yahaya began playing with JS du Ténéré ...

Legia Warsaw Legia Warszawa (), commonly referred to as Legia Warsaw or simply Legia, is a professional football club based in Warsaw, Poland. Legia is the most successful Polish football club in history, winning a record 15 champions titles, a record 2 ...

in Poland and Ibrahim Tankary in Belgium's Jupiler League.

Moussa Narry Moussa Narry (born ''Moses Narh'' on 19 April 1986) is a former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Born in Niger he made six appearances for the Ghana national team. Club career Born in Maradi, Niger, Narry began h ...

, a Nigerien citizen but a

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

international, played in the Netherlands and with

AJ Auxerre Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise (), commonly known as AJ Auxerre or by the abbreviation AJA, is a French professional association football, football club based in the Communes of France, commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club plays in L ...

and

Le Mans FC Le Mans Football Club (; commonly referred to as Le Mans FC) is a French professional football club based in Le Mans. The club set to compete in Ligue 2 from 2025–26, the second tier of French football after promotion from Championnat Nation ...

of France.

Domestic

Football in Niger is almost entirely amateur, with some of the ten teams in the

Niger Premier League The Super Ligue, formerly known as Ligue 1, is the top division of football in Niger. There are 14 teams competing in the league, which operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Ligue Nationale (Niger), Ligue Nationale. The league ...

(begun in 1966) being semi-professional. The

Niger Cup The Niger Cup ''(Coupe nationale du Niger)'' is the national football competition, on a knock-out-basis in Niger. It was founded in 1974. The most successful club is Sahel SC, Sahel with 12 titles. Niger Cup Finals Performance by club Referen ...

(begun in 1974) is open to amateur leagues throughout the nation. League play has been dominated by clubs from the capital city of

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. As the Niamey Urban Community (, CUN), it is a Regions of Niger, first-level division of Niger, surrounded by the Tillabéri Region, in the western part of the country. Niamey lies on the Nige ...

, with Sahel SC Niamey and

Olympic FC de Niamey Olympic FC de Niamey is a Nigerien professional football club based in Niamey. Their home games are played at Général Seyni Kountché Stadion. The club was formed in 1964 from the football club Secteur 6. Achievements *Niger Premier League: ...

capturing almost two thirds of the titles between them. Below this there are numerous local and national amateur leagues and competitions. Many sections of the Nigerien government, notably the police and armed forces, sponsor amateur clubs. Football's popularity and the Nigerien people's passion for the international game were highlighted by former World Footballer of the Year

Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; ; ''Zineddin Lyazid Zidan''; ; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as an attacking midfi ...

's visit to Niger in 2007. Mobbed by fans at every stop, Zidane delivered funds and toured projects both football- and development-related.Visite de Zinedine Zidane au Niger. 13-12-07 communiqué de presse
: Programme des Nations Unies pour le Développement, Niger.

Nigerien football topics

Nigerien Football Federation The Nigerien Football Federation (FENIFOOT) () is the governing body of football in Niger. It organizes the national football league and the national team. History The FENIFOOT was founded in 1961, and affiliated to FIFA in 1964 and to CAF in 19 ...

* Niger men's national football team * Niger women's national football team

Football stadiums in Niger

Nigerien footballers

Ismaël Alassane Ismaël Eragae Alassane (born 3 April 1984) is a Nigerien footballer. He plays as a centre back. Career The defender has played for JS du Ténéré, Sahel SC Association Sportive du Faso-Yennenga, ASFA Yennega and Enyimba International F.C. Wh ...

* Kassaly Daouda *

Alhassane Issoufou Alhassane Dante Issoufou (born January 1, 1981) is a Nigerien footballer who plays as a striker. Career Before signed with Morrocain club played for ASO Chlef and formerly presented Zumunta AC, Africa Sports, CA Bordj Bou Arreridj, JS du Ténér ...

* Daouda Kamilou * Moussa Maazou *

Abdoul Moumouni Abdoul Moumouni Amadou Darankoum (born 7 August 2002) is a Nigerien professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Mesaimeer in the Qatari Second Division. Club career Moumouni started his career with Nigerien club US GN in 201 ...

* Mohammed Muyei *

* Ibrahim Tankary *

Nigerien international referees

Lucien Bouchardeau Lucien Bouchardeau (18 December 1961 – 20 February 2018) was a Nigerien football referee. Born in Niamey, he is best remembered for having officiated in 1998 a World Cup first round match between Italy and Chile. He called a penalty against Ch ...

References

FIFA: Nigerien Football Federation News and background
Retrieved 30 January 2008.

Retrieved 30 January 2008.

External links

Le Republicain-Niger daily, Sports section
{{Football in Africa