Nigeria: NFF Debunks Fake Ashley Plumptre Claims, Urges Media to Verify Reports

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has dismissed as false reports circulating on social media that Super Falcons defender Ashley Plumptre had complained about being omitted from Nigeria's squad for the forthcoming Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the federation condemned the spread of misinformation and renewed its call on journalists, media organisations and members of the public to verify information before sharing or publishing it.

The controversy arose after a Facebook post, allegedly attributed to Plumptre, claimed the defender had expressed frustration over her purported exclusion from Nigeria's squad for the 2026 WAFCON tournament in Morocco, scheduled to take place from 25 July to 16 August.

However, the NFF described the report as entirely fabricated.

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NFF Director of Competitions, Ruth David, clarified that Plumptre does not operate a Facebook account and has repeatedly warned the public about impersonators using her identity online.

"This is totally false," David said.

"Last year, Ashley Plumptre released a video in which she categorically stated that she is not on Facebook and that some individuals have been impersonating her. She has made several attempts to have the fake page removed without success.

"Nothing has changed regarding her absence from Facebook. The player is not on the platform, and nobody should believe anything coming from the cloned account."

David further noted that the claim was flawed because the Super Falcons' coaching crew had not yet submitted a final squad list for the continental tournament.

"The coach has not submitted any list of players for the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, so the scammer got it completely wrong," she added.

She also recalled previous instances of misinformation involving members of the national women's team, including false reports concerning striker Esther Okoronkwo and former African Player of the Year Asisat Oshoala.

"The same scammer was responsible for claims some weeks ago that Esther Okoronkwo had made similar comments. In reality, she was not invited for the friendly matches against Senegal because she was recovering from injury.

"We also remember reports claiming Asisat Oshoala had retired from international football, which was completely untrue."

The federation warned that the growing prevalence of fake news poses a serious threat to public trust and urged media professionals to uphold the highest standards of accuracy and verification.

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"We appeal to well-meaning individuals to double-check any information they encounter before sharing it. The spread of fake news has become overwhelming, and media owners and practitioners must verify stories for the sake of their integrity and credibility," David said.

Plumptre also responded to the reports on Tuesday, describing the accounts behind the posts as fraudulent and revealing that efforts were underway to have them removed.

"Awful false accounts. I've posted on my Instagram and X asking people to report them. They are using my identity and scamming people," the defender said.

"I'm currently contacting someone in Saudi Arabia to help me take these accounts down because this has been happening for well over a year now."

The NFF reiterated its warning to supporters and media outlets to rely only on verified sources for information concerning national team players and official team matters.