The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has dismissed as false a viral social media report alleging that Super Falcons defender Ashley Plumptre complained about being excluded from Nigeria’s squad for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), urging journalists and the public to verify information before sharing it.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the football governing body expressed concern over the continued spread of unverified stories on social media platforms and renewed its appeal to media organisations, journalists and content creators to fact-check reports before amplifying them.
According to the NFF, the latest misinformation originated from what it described as an internet scammer who posted a fabricated report on Facebook claiming that Plumptre had lamented her omission from the Super Falcons team expected to defend Nigeria’s title at the 14th edition of WAFCON in Morocco.
The federation stressed that the report was entirely false and clarified that the player had not made any such statement.
NFF Director of Competitions, Ruth David, moved swiftly to debunk the claim, pointing out that Plumptre does not operate a Facebook account and has previously warned the public about impersonators using her identity online.
“This is totally false. Last year, Ashley Plumptre made a video in which she categorically said that she is NOT on Facebook; that some fellows are impersonating her and that she has tried several times to bring down the page without success,” David said.
She further noted that the situation remains unchanged, warning football fans and media practitioners against relying on content posted through fake accounts.
“Nothing has changed about her absence from Facebook; the player is not on Facebook and nobody should believe anything that emanates from the cloned account,” she added.
The NFF said the incident highlights the growing challenge of misinformation in the digital age and reiterated the importance of responsible journalism, particularly as anticipation builds ahead of the 2026 WAFCON tournament scheduled to hold in Morocco from July 25 to August 16.
The federation emphasized that journalists and members of the public should always seek confirmation from official channels before publishing or sharing sensitive reports involving national team players and officials.
