Nigeria’s Future Eagles were held to a 3-3 draw by South Sudan in their opening Group AD match at the inaugural FIFA U15 World Cup & Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Saturday.

The eight-a-side fixture at the Hovsan Competition Complex produced an open contest, with both teams showing attacking intent throughout the two 20-minute halves required under the tournament’s format.

Coach Patrick Bassey’s side had to recover from behind twice after arriving in Baku on Thursday with a 14-man squad and six officials.

Nigeria made a positive start, but South Sudan - known as the Bright Stars - responded strongly in what was their first FIFA World Cup appearance at any level. The draw gives the Future Eagles one point from their first of five group matches.

Nigeria were placed in Group AD with South Sudan, Jordan, The Gambia, Cyprus and Pakistan.

The Future Eagles face a demanding schedule on Sunday, with two matches to play. They meet Jordan at 09:45 Nigerian time before taking on The Gambia at 16:30.

Their remaining group fixtures against Cyprus and Pakistan will be played on Monday.

The teams’ performances in the group stage will decide which tier they enter in the second phase, scheduled for 28 and 29 October. The tier finals will take place on Friday, 30 October.

New FIFA youth competition

The FIFA U-15 World Cup & Festival is an international youth competition for national teams featuring players aged up to 15.

It is open to all 211 FIFA member associations and uses a small-sided, festival-style format. Each team is expected to play around nine matches, with FIFA describing the event as its largest tournament to date.

The competition was established as part of FIFA’s commitment to developing youth football. The U-15 tournament for boys and girls was approved by the FIFA Council in December 2025.

Azerbaijan was selected to host the first edition, with 189 member associations participating. Matches are being played in Baku from 24 to 30 October 2026.