Burkina Faso’s President, Captain Ibrahim Traore, has expressed frustration and demanded answers after the Stallions narrowly missed out on a 2026 FIFA World Cup play-off spot to the Super Eagles.
Despite finishing level on 15 adjusted points with Nigeria, Burkina Faso was edged out on goal difference, a detail that has left fans and officials in Ouagadougou furious.
Reports from Ghanaweb say the presidential office confirms that President Traore has called for a detailed explanation from the Burkina Faso Football Federation and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) over what he described as a confusing and painful outcome.
Burkina Faso Presidency has expressed frustration and confusion over how Nigeria qualified for the CAF World Cup playoffs ahead of the Stallions. 🇧🇫
— Micky Jnr (@MickyJnr__) October 15, 2025
Reports indicate that President Ibrahim Traoré has requested a detailed explanation regarding the qualification process, which saw… pic.twitter.com/Xk01tedaL0
The Stallions, who were superb throughout the qualifiers, believed their impressive campaign was enough to earn a place in the play-offs. However, CAF’s competition regulations determined otherwise.
CAF play-off rules explained
Burkina Faso finished second in Group A behind Algeria, amassing a total of 21 points.
However, CAF rules stated that when determining the best four runners-up across all qualifying groups, results against bottom-placed teams are excluded from the final tally, as seen on FIFA's official website.
For Burkina Faso, this meant that six points earned from their two victories against Djibouti were deducted, dropping their adjusted total to 15.
Nigeria, meanwhile, finished second in Group C with 17 points but only earned two points against Zimbabwe, who finished bottom of Group C, leaving the Super Eagles with an adjusted total of 15 points as well.
Our opponents for the African World Cup playoff semi-final are Gabon 🇬🇦.
— 🇳🇬 Super Eagles (@NGSuperEagles) October 15, 2025
Win here, reach the final and then the inter-confederation playoffs await.
Save the date 🗓️#SoarSuperEagles | #RoadTo2026 | #FIFAWCQ | #Naija4thewin pic.twitter.com/jJZQH1pJnq
When the final calculations were made, both Burkina Faso and Nigeria stood level on points. However, Nigeria’s superior goal difference of +7 compared to Burkina Faso’s +6 proved decisive.
This tiny margin handed the Super Eagles the final CAF playoff slot, joining Gabon, Cameroon, and DR Congo in the November showdown in Morocco.
President Traore, according to sources, was “deeply disappointed” by how the rules were applied, and he believes the Stallions deserved a fairer consideration given their strong showing despite difficult circumstances.
Fans outraged as Stallions miss historic chance
The news has sparked outrage among fans in Burkina Faso, many of whom took to social media to vent their frustrations.
“We did everything right,” one fan wrote on X.
“How can we lose out because of a technical rule that doesn’t reflect our performance?”
The Burkina Faso Football Federation is reportedly preparing an official inquiry to CAF, seeking clarification on how the tiebreaker was applied.
