After leading the Super Falcons to a record-extending 10th WAFCON title in Morocco this year, Super Falcons coach Justine Madugu was also ranked among the world’s best women’s football coaches at the 2025 Ballon d’Or. In this interview with Punch the tactician speaks about how he kept his focus amid doubts about his ability

Coach, congratulations on the 2025 Ballon d’Or recognition, which places you among the top five women’s football coaches in the world. How does it feel to be recognised globally?

Naturally, everybody would be happy that you are given that kind of recognition. It is something to be grateful for. For one to be nominated among thousands and millions of coaches worldwide, it gives credence to the fact that people appreciate what you have done with the team that has given you the accolade. There must be some yardstick they have used to assess everybody at that level, and we really must appreciate those who gave us the opportunity to showcase what we can do. Those who believed in us at the federation and credits must also go to the players who made it possible. With all the knowledge you have in your head, if you have nobody to translate it, it will amount to nothing.

You didn’t attend the ceremony. So, how did you watch?

I watched the ceremony with family members and friends.

What was your expectation as you watched that night?

For me, I wasn’t moved by anything. I just had it in my mind that anything can happen. Anybody who was nominated at that level could win the award. Somehow, too, I had already prepared my mind because I knew I wasn’t going to win.

Why did you think so?

I believe that under normal circumstances, at least the first two nominees in the rankings would be expected to be there. Voting has been done, and they knew how the nominees were ranked. So, at least the first two would have been there so that you don’t sell out the eventual winner. The fact that I was not contacted up to that time, I knew it was going to be difficult to win. So, if I had won then, who would have received the award? If I had been contacted, that would have given me more hope. So, while the event was going on, I knew what would likely happen. Nevertheless, I watched every bit of the ceremony and enjoyed it. Globally, I was being mentioned, and being the first African to be nominated also means a lot. Now, we have set the pace, and it would not be a new thing again. In subsequent editions, the searchlight would be on African coaches again, knowing that they can always win. This will also motivate a lot of African coaches to do more because our impacts are seen globally.

You were also nominated for the CAF Women’s coach of The Year Award. How optimistic are you about winning that?

To be honest with you, I’ll be modest about my chances. I’ve talked about what my global nomination meant for Africa, so competing for a continental award with my colleagues here, you have to respect the chances of everyone. So, let’s keep our fingers crossed and see how things go.

You have put in many years of work as a coach, but how would you describe your professional journey over the last one year?

Like you know, I am not the type who would blow my trumpet that I have done this and done that. It is for people to judge you. It is for people to assess you and make their comments. For me, I just keep focus on what is ahead. People’s opinions do matter sometimes because they encourage, and when they are untrue, it gets discouraging. But as a human being, you must learn to live with it, and that is the world we are living in. You can’t be a leader anywhere and expect people to make positive comments about you always.

So, like you asked, over the past year, I just thank God for all that we have been able to do as a team. It is not a one-man show. The entire Super Falcons players, the backroom staff, and the federation have been doing their best to make the team get better and achieve what we achieved in Morocco. Since last year, when I was given the appointment as the interim coach, we have played about 15 matches, and we drew two (Portugal and Algeria), lost only one against France in Angers, and we won the remaining.

You’ve always been around the Nigerian women’s national team. How has your journey been over the years?

I started my coaching career at the grassroots level, and around 2007, I became the assistant coach of the Falconents. At different points since then, I have also worked as the Flamingos assistant coach even while I was a technical adviser at Adamawa United, Adamawa Queens, and FC Taraba. I also worked as the assistant coach of the home-based Super Eagles between 2009 and 2010. Along the line, I also acquired more certifications in coaching and even some management courses.

People doubted your ability to lead the Falcons to the WAFCON in Morocco. Did those kinds of comments get to you?

Not at all, it is only natural that people will form their own opinions. People have their own interests, and I was not distracted by all of those. I gave it my best shot, and it worked out. Some people trusted us, that was why they allowed us to do the job, and what they knew about us, not everybody knew that.

In the final of the WAFCON, what did you tell your players at halftime to overturn the deficit?

Under normal circumstances, a football game is never won or lost untilt the final whistle. We believed so much in ourselves and the efforts we had put in. What we did was look at the manner of goals we conceded, and we knew they were errors on our part and we knew that if we could do the turnaround as quickly as possible, the game would be open. We are a team that never gives up. Leading to the final, there were games we got late goals. We did it against Botswana and South Africa. So, we really believed it wasn’t over.

Winning the 10 WFCON title for Nigeria and being nominated for the women’s coach at the Ballon d’Or, which of these achievements do you rank above the other?

It depends on which angle you’re looking at it from. Winning the WAFCON brought the nation pride and gave me a national honour as well. For the nomination, you are always happy about such, as it also serves as an encouragement for others too, especially when you get to the level people think you can’t get to.

Looking ahead, the next phase of the job would be about making another statement on the continent and the world stage. Are you strategising for the task ahead?

For every other tournament that is still coming, whether it is the WAFCON or the World Cup, we have to qualify. That is the major target; after that, we start thinking of what’s next and how to scale up our achievements.

Monday Gift missed the WAFCON and was left out of the 2026 WAFCON qualifiers too. We see she is in form, so why has she been overlooked?

I have no issues at all with Gift. She is very much part of my plans and will surely play her part in our quest for global success. But right now, there is strong competition for the forward position considering the form of players like Esther Okoronkwo, Chiwendu Ihezuo, and Joy Omewa, who have all been excellent. I have no plans to shortchange anyone. We must always select the best players available. Gift will definitely be given a look-in during the next camp, where we can assess her performance properly.

You have invited some new players at every window since you started the Falcons job. How have they impressed and what’s the fate of someone like Edna Imade, whom Nigerians are still expecting to see?

For Imade, I’ve been following her progress, just like that of many of our players overseas. She had an excellent campaign with Granada last season and is already doing well at Real Sociedad. She knows that we are monitoring her performance. Despite several efforts, writing to her club and even reaching out through some of our players in Spain, she is yet to fully make up her mind. Whatever she decides, we respect her decision and wish her good luck.

I was reliably informed that she was initially keen on playing for Nigeria. I don’t want to believe her representatives are making things difficult due to speculated interest from the Spanish national team, but we truly value her talent. We want the best players, both home-based and abroad, to give us a blend of mentality, character, and experience.

For the new invitees like Joy Omewa and Taiwo Afolabi, they have shown what they can offer and how well they can integrate. We try to give every player a chance and we hope to continue in subsequent games as well.