Nigeria-descent makes France squad for 2026 World Cup as Ugochukwu, Ilenikhena miss out

Nigerians will watch the 2026 FIFA World Cup with mixed emotions after Michael Akpovie Olise secured a place in France’s final 26-man squad for the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, Afrik-Foot reports.

The Bayern Munich attacker is set to become the first player of Nigerian descent to represent France at a senior FIFA World Cup. The former Reading star had previously appeared for France at the Olympics and the UEFA Nations League to end one of the longest international tug-of-wars involving the Super Eagles in recent years.

France coach Didier Deschamps named Olise among a new generation of attacking players expected to support captain Kylian Mbappe during the tournament. The squad also includes Ousmane Dembele, Bradley Barcola, Desire Doue, Rayan Cherki and Marcus Thuram, while Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga was one of the biggest names left out after an injury-hit season.

Olise’s rise has been rapid. Born in London to a Nigerian father and a French-Algerian mother, he was eligible to play for Nigeria, England, Algeria and France.

The Nigerian Football Federation made early attempts to convince him to choose the Super Eagles, with former coach Gernot Rohr placing him on a standby list ahead of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Benin Republic and Lesotho.

But Olise never hid his desire to represent Les Bleus. He finally earned his senior France call-up in August 2024 for UEFA Nations League matches against Italy and Belgium and has since become an important part of Deschamps’ plans.

France will begin their World Cup campaign against Senegal at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on 16 June before facing Iraq in Philadelphia and Norway in Massachusetts.

Nigeria still have hope over Ugochukwu, Ilenikhena

While Olise is now permanently tied to France, the situations involving Lesley Ugochukwu and George Ilenikhena remain very different, and potentially encouraging for Nigeria.

Former Chelsea midfielder Ugochukwu, who impressed during his debut season at Burnley in the Premier League this season, failed to make Deschamps’ final squad despite being viewed as one of France’s promising young midfielders. The omission is likely to increase hopes within the Nigerian Football Federation that the 22-year-old could still be persuaded to switch allegiance to the Super Eagles.

The case of Ilenikhena may be even more significant for Nigeria.

The Lagos-born striker, who joined Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad from AS Monaco in a deal worth around €33 million earlier this year, was also omitted from France’s squad. Unlike Olise, however, Ilenikhena is still only eligible for Nigeria at senior level because his French citizenship process has not yet been fully completed.

The 19-year-old moved to France as a child and has long been monitored by the French Football Federation, but without a completed passport process, Deschamps could not select him for the World Cup even if he wanted to.

His move away from European football also appears to have damaged his immediate chances with France. Deschamps has traditionally preferred players competing regularly in Europe’s top leagues, especially young forwards still developing at international level.

That has created an opening Nigeria cannot afford to ignore.

Neither Ugochukwu nor Ilenikhena has played a competitive senior match for France, meaning both remain eligible for the Super Eagles. With the World Cup now out of reach for the pair, Nigeria may see a valuable opportunity to strengthen its future squad with two highly-rated talents who still have major international decisions to make.