Football is the most popular sport in

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesFIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

finals, though they did reach the quarterfinals of qualifying for the

1982 World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain between 13 June and 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy, who defeated West Germany 3–1 i ...

, losing to

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. They either failed to qualify for or were forced to withdraw from every African Nations Cup between 1969 and 2010. Niger finally participated in the competition for the first time in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

after topping a qualifying group that included

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

. Later that year, they defeated Guinea over two legs to reach the

2013 Africa Cup of Nations The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, also known as the Orange Africa Cup of Nations South Africa 2013 for sponsorship reasons, held from 19 January to 10 February 2013, was the 29th Africa Cup of Nations, the football championship of Africa organized ...

. On both occasions, Niger finished bottom of their group, gaining a solitary point in 2013. They have been unable to qualify for any subsequent edition of the tournament, despite the competition's expansion from 16 teams to 24 from

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

onwards. As of 2023, there are no Nigerien nationals playing with top level European clubs. In the 2000s, a handful of Nigerien internationals have played in Europe including

Moussa Yahaya Moussa Yahaya (born 4 January 1975) is a Nigerien retired footballer who played as a striker. He represented the Niger national team on sixteen occasions. Football career Born in Agadez, Yahaya began playing with JS du Ténéré. In 1995, he st ...

at Legia Warsaw in Poland and Ibrahim Tankary in Belgium's Jupiler League.

Moussa Narry Moussa Narry (born ''Moses Narh'' on 19 April 1986) is a former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Born in Niger he made six appearances for the Ghana national team. Club career Born in Maradi, Niger, Narry began hi ...

, a Nigerien citizen but a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

international, played in the Netherlands and with

AJ Auxerre Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise (), commonly known as AJ Auxerre or simply Auxerre (), is a French football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the first division ...

and

Le Mans FC Le Mans Football Club (; commonly referred to as Le Mans FC, formerly referred as Le Muc) is a French association football club based in Le Mans. The club was founded in 1985 as a result of a merger under the name Le Mans Union Club 72. In 2010 ...

of France.

Domestic

Football in Niger is almost entirely amateur, with some of the ten teams in the Niger Premier League (begun in 1966) being semi-professional. The Niger Cup (begun in 1974) is open to amateur leagues throughout the nation. League play has been dominated by clubs from the capital city of

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. Niamey lies on the Niger River, primarily situated on the east bank. Niamey's population was counted as 1,026,848 as of the 2012 census. As of 2017, population projections show the capital dis ...

, with Sahel SC Niamey and

Olympic FC de Niamey Olympic FC de Niamey is a Nigerien football club based in Niamey. Their home games are played at Général Seyni Kountché Stadion. The club was formed in 1974 from the football club Secteur 6. Achievements * Niger Premier League: 12 ::196 ...

capturing almost two thirds of the titles between them. Below this there are numerous local and national amateur leagues and competitions. Many sections of the Nigerien government, notably the police and armed forces, sponsor amateur clubs. Football's popularity and the Nigerien people's passion for the international game were highlighted by former World Footballer of the Year Zinedine Zidane's visit to Niger in 2007. Mobbed by fans at every stop, Zidane delivered funds and toured projects both football- and development-related.Visite de Zinedine Zidane au Niger. 13-12-07 communiqué de presse
: Programme des Nations Unies pour le Développement, Niger.

Nigerien Football Topics

Nigerien Football Federation The Nigerien Football Federation (FENIFOOT) (french: Fédération Nigerienne de Football) is the governing body of football in Niger. It organizes the national football league and the national team. History The FENIFOOT was founded in 1961, and a ...

* Niger men's national football team * Niger women's national football team

Nigerien Football Stadiums

Nigerien Footballers

* Ismaël Alassane * Kassaly Daouda * Alhassane Issoufou * Daouda Kamilou * Moussa Maazou * Abdoul Moumouni * Mohammed Muyei *

* Ibrahim Tankary *

Nigerien International Referees

* Lucien Bouchardeau

References

FIFA: Nigerien Football Federation News and background
Retrieved 30 January 2008.

Retrieved 30 January 2008.

External links

Le Republicain-Niger daily, Sports section
{{Football in Africa