The country
With more than 140 million inhabitants, the Federal Republic of Nigeria is by far the most populous country in Africa and the thirteenth-largest in the continent. While 75 per cent of the population live in rural areas, some 24 cities have more than 100,000 inhabitants, among them Lagos, Kano, Port Harcourt and Aba. Home to a fifth of Africa's total population, Nigeria is also a culturally diverse nation thanks to the languages and traditions of the Hausa, Igbo, Kanuri, Nupe, Tiv and Yoruba ethnic groups.

Situated on the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria is divided into 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja. With a land frontier of more than 4,000km and another 853km of coastline, Nigeria is bordered by Benin to the west, Cameroon to the east, Niger to the north and Chad to the north east. Its most important cities can be found in the south, which boasts an equatorial climate, while the centre of the country is predominantly savannah and highlands. To the north lies the Sahel, the arid region that borders the Sahara. Despite being a major producer of oil, gas and minerals - the country's main natural resources and sources of revenue - Nigeria remains relatively poor.

The earliest signs of human habitation in Nigeria date to 9,000 BC and the first civilisations largely reflected the current ethnic composition of the country: the Yoruba kingdoms, the Igbo kingdom of Nri, the Edo kingdom of Benin, the Hausa kingdom and the Nupe. Like most African countries, Nigeria endured slavery and was colonised, under the British in its case, before gaining independence in 1960. Following numerous civil wars and coups, it is now a federal republic. Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, the Nigerian head of state and president, has the delicate task of governing a country beset by ongoing tension between Muslims and Christians.

Football
Although Nigeria is home to 250 different ethnic groups, its vast population shares one uniting passion: football. Founded in 1945, the Nigerian Football Association has been a member of FIFA since 1958, and the national team is one of the most powerful on the continent, having won the CAF Africa Cup of Nations on two occasions (1980 and 1994).

The Super Eagles qualified for three FIFA World Cup™ finals in a row between 1994 and 2002, reaching the Round of 16 at USA 1994 before going down 2-1 to eventual runners-up Italy after extra time. The heroes of this highly talented generation, which included the likes of Jay-Jay Okocha, Emmanuel Amunike, Daniel Amokachi, Rashidi Yekini, Sunday Oliseh and Nwankwo Kanu, have all left their mark on Nigerian football.

Nigeria's youth teams have enjoyed even greater success on the international stage. Olympic champions at Atlanta in 1996, they reached the final again in Beijing last year. The Golden Eaglets have also won the FIFA U-17 World Cup three times, the most recent of those triumphs coming at Korea Republic in 2007.

As far as club football is concerned, the Nigerian Premier League was set up 1972 and has been dominated over the years by four clubs, each of whom have won the championship five times: Enyimba, Shooting Stars, Heartland FC and Enugu Rangers. The Nigerian Cup came into being in 1960 and has been won eight times by Shooting Stars. Enyimba, the leading side from the city of Aba, is the only Nigerian team to have made an impression on the continental scene, winning the CAF Champions League in 2003 and 2004.