Troost-Ekong. Photo Source: X.
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Claim: An X user claims that Super Eagles captain Troost-Ekong has retired from international football.
Verdict: False. Our research shows that no credible media outlet has reported the alleged development, nor has Troost-Ekong or the NFF announced that the captain has retired from international football.
Full Text
The Nigerian national football team was defeated by the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo DR) in their quest for a spot at the 2026 World Cup. However, the Super Eagles will travel to Cairo on Dec. 10, 2025, for an international friendly with the Pharaohs of Egypt, ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament, which is scheduled to commence in Morocco on Dec. 23, 2025.
An X user, @drpeking, claims that the Super Eagles captain, Williams Troost-Ekong, has retired from international football and will no longer represent Nigeria in international matches.
“BREAKING NEWS: Troost Ekong throws in the towel from international football,” The X user wrote.
We found similar claims shared here, here, here, here, and here.
As of Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, the post had garnered over 113,000 views, 55 comments, 295 retweets, 4,100 likes, and 34 bookmarks.
While some X users dismissed the claim as false, others thought the 32-year-old’s alleged decision was too early.
“This news would come directly from Ekong himself, not anyone else,” @Itata_9 stated.
“Where did you get this piece of information from?” @iAMPODii queried.
“He should’ve waited until after the AFCON…” @TalmudicSage expressed.
“Legend, much appreciated,” @ladondo247 commended.
Due to the contrasting views expressed by X users, who either believed or questioned the authenticity of the post, DUBAWA decided to verify the claim.
Verification
DUBAWA checked if any credible news outlet had reported the alleged development. We found no media reports on the captain’s alleged retirement from international football.
We checked Troost-Ekong’s social media handles on X, Facebook, and Instagram and found no official announcement about his alleged retirement from international football.
DUBAWA noticed that in his X and Facebook bio, Troost-Ekong still identifies as “Nigeria’s Super Eagles captain.” On Instagram, his bio indicates that he is still actively involved with Nigeria’s national football team.
We also checked the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) website and noticed that it did not publish any information related to the X user’s claim.
In the recently released AFCON preliminary squad, the Super Eagles coach, Eric, included Troost-Ekong as one of the team’s defenders.
Conclusion
DUBAWA’s findings show that no credible news outlet has published any information on the X user’s claim. Also, neither Troost-Ekong nor the NFF has made an official statement about the alleged development. The claim is, therefore, false.
