# Nigeria national badminton team

The Nigeria national badminton team represents Nigeria in international badminton team competitions. It is managed by the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, the governing body of badminton in Nigeria. Nigeria was one of the seven African countries that formed the Badminton Confederation of Africa on 31 August 1977. The country first competed in the African Badminton Championships in 1980.
Nigeria made their debut in the Sudirman Cup in 1999. In 2008, the team qualified and competed in the Thomas Cup for the first time after defeating South Africa for the first time in the African qualifiers. The team have yet to qualify for the Uber Cup.

## History
### Men's team

Nigeria's men's team first competed in the 1979 WBF World Championships. The team were drawn into Group 2 with Pakistan, Nepal and Ghana. The team lost 5−0 to Pakistan and 3−2 to Nepal in the group stage. In the classification round, the team defeated the Philippines 3−2 to finish in 10th place. In 1980, the team won the men's team event at the 1980 African Badminton Championships in Beira. In 1982, Nigeria hosted the 1982 African Badminton Championships and won their second title in the men's team event. In 1988, the team won their third men's team title at the 1988 African Badminton Championships on home soil. In 1990, the team failed to qualify for the Thomas Cup after losing their matches in the group stage.
In 2008, the team defeated South Africa 3−0 in the final of the African qualifiers and qualified for the Thomas Cup for the first time. In the 2008 Thomas Cup, the team were drawn into Group A with China and Canada. The team placed third in the group after losing 5−0 to both teams. In the wild-card round, the team lost 3−0 to England and failed to enter the quarter-finals.
In 2010, the team qualified for the Thomas Cup for a second time after defeating Mauritius 3−0 in the finals. In the 2010 Thomas Cup, the team were drawn into Group B with Japan and hosts Malaysia. In their first match against the hosts, the team failed to show up to the venue in time due to flight problems. The match was then cancelled and Malaysia were awarded a 5−0 win against Nigeria. In their second match against Japan, the team lost 5−0 and were eliminated in the group stages. In 2012, the team failed to qualify for the 2012 Thomas Cup after losing to South Africa in the final of the African qualifiers.
In 2014, the team qualified for the 2014 Thomas Cup as the highest ranked team in Africa. The team were drawn into Group A with Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. The team were eliminated after losing 5−0 to Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. In 2018, the team were runners-up at the African Men's Team Championships, losing 3−2 to Algeria in the final. In 2024, the team entered the finals of the African Men's Team Championships and went head to head against their final opponents from six years ago. The team started off with a 2−0 lead when Victor Ikechukwu and Anuoluwapo Juwon Opeyori defeated Koceila Mammeri and Youcef Sabri Medel in the singles matches respectively. The team however could not convert in the next three matches and lost 3−2 to Algeria.

### Women's team

In 1980, Nigeria finished behind Zimbabwe in the women's team event at the 1980 African Badminton Championships. In 1982, the team won the women's team title at the 1982 African Badminton Championships. In 1988, the team won their third title in the 1988 African Badminton Championships. In 1990 and 1998, the team were eliminated in the group stages of the Uber Cup qualifiers. From 2010 to 2016, the team entered the semi-finals of the Uber Cup African qualifiers but failed to qualify for the Cup tournament.
In 2018, the team lost 3−0 to Mauritius in the final of the 2018 African Women's Team Championships. In 2024, the team entered the semi-finals of the 2024 African Women's Team Championships but lost 3−2 to South Africa.

### Mixed team

Nigeria were back-to-back champions of the mixed team event at the African Badminton Championships in 1980 and 1982. In 1988, Nigeria won the mixed team event again at the African championships since their withdrawal in 1984. In the 1992 African Badminton Championships, the Nigerian team entered the final but refused to play against South Africa who have just returned from suspension. The team were runners-up by default. In 1991, the team withdrew from competing in the 1991 Sudirman Cup. In 1994, the team were bronze medalists at the 1994 African Badminton Championships after losing to South Africa in the semi-finals. The team also competed in the 1994 Commonwealth Games in that same year but were eliminated in the group stages.
In 1999, the team competed in the Sudirman Cup for the first time. The team were drawn into Group 7 with Estonia, Latvia and Argentina. The team defeated Argentina 5−0. The team then defeated Latvia 3−2 but lost to Estonia by the same margin and finished in 48th place. In 2003, the team competed in the All-Africa Games while it was also the host. The team entered the final but lost 3−2 to South Africa. In 2007, the team won the mixed team event at the 2007 All-Africa Games. In 2010, the team competed in the 2010 Commonwealth Games but did not make it past the group stage. In 2011, the team won the All-Africa Games mixed team event for a second time. In 2015, the team competed in the 2015 Sudirman Cup and placed 35th after defeating Kazakhstan in the playoffs.
In April 2019, the team were champions at the 2019 African Mixed Team Championships. In August 2019, the team won their third team title at the African Games. In 2023, the team competed in the 2023 African Mixed Team Championships and were eliminated in the quarter-finals after losing 3−1 to Mauritius.

## Competitive record
### African Games
#### Mixed team

| Year | Round | Pos |
| 2003 | Runners-up | 2nd |
| 2007 | Champions | 1st |
| 2011 | Champions | 1st |
| 2015 | Semi-finals | 3rd |
| 2019 | Champions | 1st |
| 2027 | To be determined | To be determined |

### African Team Championships

    **Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

## Junior competitive record
### Suhandinata Cup

| Year | Round | Pos |
| 2000 | Withdrew | Withdrew |
| 2002 | Group stage | 18th |
| 2004 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2006 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2007 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2008 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2009 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2010 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2011 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2012 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2013 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2014 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2015 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2016 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2017 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2018 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2019 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2022 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2023 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2024 | To be determined | To be determined |

### Commonwealth Youth Games
#### Mixed team

| Year | Round | Pos |
| 2004 | Did not enter | Did not enter |

### African Junior Team Championships
#### Mixed team

| Year | Round | Pos |
| 1979 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1980 | Champions | 1st |
| 1982 | Champions | 1st |
| 1984 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1988 | Champions | 1st |
| 1993 | Runners-up | 2nd |
| 1995 | Runners-up | 2nd |
| 1997 | Third place | 3rd |
| 1999 | Champions | 1st |
| 2001 | Runners-up | 2nd |
| 2003 | Withdrew | Withdrew |
| 2005 | Champions | 1st |
| 2007 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2009 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2011 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2013 | Runners-up | 2nd |
| 2016 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2021 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2022 | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2024 | To be determined | To be determined |
    **Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

## Players
### Current squad

    As of 2 January 2024

#### Men's team

| Name | DoB/Age | Ranking of event | Ranking of event | Ranking of event |
| Name | DoB/Age | MS | MD | XD |
| Anuoluwapo Juwon Opeyori | (1997-06-01) 1 June 1997 (age 27) | 121 | 534 | - |
| Emmanuel Olusegun Ogunsanwo | (1999-09-13) 13 September 1999 (age 25) | 563 | 304 | - |
| Joseph Abel | (2003-01-05) 5 January 2003 (age 22) | 974 | 304 | - |
| Joseph Emmanuel Emmy | (2004-10-30) 30 October 2004 (age 20) | 609 | 295 | - |
| Victor Ikechukwu | (1998-05-28) 28 May 1998 (age 26) | 691 | 295 | - |
| Saddam Sidi Rufai | (2003-09-25) 25 September 2003 (age 21) | 1134 | 304 | - |
| Khalil Safana Shamsuddeen | (2003-09-28) 28 September 2003 (age 21) | 609 | 304 | - |
| Godwin Olofua | (1999-04-18) 18 April 1999 (age 25) | 442 | 505 | - |
| David Oluwasegun Ogunsanwo | (2001-10-15) 15 October 2001 (age 23) | 694 | 505 | - |
| Yunusa Momoh | (1997-04-15) 15 April 1997 (age 27) | - | 362 | 516 |

#### Women's team

| Name | DoB/Age | Ranking of event | Ranking of event | Ranking of event |
| Name | DoB/Age | WS | WD | XD |
| Grace Gabriel | (1988-06-25) 25 June 1988 (age 36) | 243 | 210 | 516 |
| Chineye Ibere | (1995-11-04) 4 November 1995 (age 29) | 340 | 357 | - |
| Naomi Tanko | (1996-02-28) 28 February 1996 (age 28) | 470 | - | - |
| Zainab Damilola Alabi | (2002-10-16) 16 October 2002 (age 22) | 465 | 457 | - |
| Ramatu Yakubu | (1999-03-27) 27 March 1999 (age 25) | - | 210 | 271 |
| Uchechukwu Deborah Ukeh | (1996-11-12) 12 November 1996 (age 28) | 586 | 357 | - |
| Sofiat Arinola Obanishola | (2003-09-16) 16 September 2003 (age 21) | 586 | 457 | - |
| Dorcas Ajoke Adesokan | (1998-07-05) 5 July 1998 (age 26) | - | 457 | - |
| Aminat Oluwafunke Ilori | (2000-11-25) 25 November 2000 (age 24) | 1029 | 457 | - |
| Umar Maryam | (1996-11-25) 25 November 1996 (age 28) | - | - | 426 |

### Previous squads
#### Thomas Cup

* 2008, 2010, 2014