A quarter of a century after Nigeria last had a centre referee at the FIFA U-17 World Cup, a new name is set to carry the country’s flag into the competition.
Zamfara-born Abiola Kasimu Abdulsalam, 34, has been selected among the match officials for the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar, ending a 25-year wait for a Nigerian centre referee at the tournament.
Abdulsalam is the only Nigerian centre referee on FIFA’s list for the competition and one of four referees selected from Africa. His appointment places him among 81 officials drawn from 36 FIFA member associations for the tournament.
The group consists of 27 referees and 54 assistant referees, selected to handle the demands of a competition that has long served as an important proving ground for officials on the international circuit.
For Abdulsalam, the Qatar assignment comes after a period of sustained involvement in African football. He has officiated at two CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and several WAFU competitions, building the continental experience that has now taken him to the FIFA stage.
His calendar also extends beyond the U-17 World Cup as he is also scheduled to referee the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match between Cameroon and Comoros, giving him another high-level international assignment in the period ahead.
The Nigerian official has been on FIFA’s list of referees since 2022 and has retained his international badge through the organisation’s annual assessment process. His record also includes selection as the only Nigerian referee for the 2025 African Nations Championship. That progression has now culminated in a place at one of FIFA’s major youth tournaments.
FIFA Referees Committee chairman Pierluigi Collina said the officials chosen for the U-17 World Cup were among the organisation’s most promising match officials. According to Collina, selection was based not only on performances on the field but also on an official’s ability to function effectively as part of an international team and handle the pressures associated with a major tournament.
Those demands will provide Abdulsalam with another test of his growth as an international referee. The assignment also gives him the opportunity to work in a global competition while adding another chapter to a career that began on the FIFA list in 2022.
Nigeria has produced generations of players who have competed on the world stage, but the development of refereeing talent remains another important part of Nigeria’s contribution to the international game.
Abdulsalam’s selection in Qatar therefore restores Nigerian representation at the centre-referee level of the FIFA U-17 World Cup after 25 years and places a Nigerian official within a new generation of international referees being given opportunities to develop at the highest level.
The whistle in Qatar will be Abdulsalam’s responsibility. The journey that took him there is another Nigerian story worth documenting.
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