Super Eagles legend, Daniel Amokachi, has revealed how a career-threatening injury before the 1998 FIFA World Cup plunged him into a mental health crisis, using his experience to call for stronger global support for young people facing similar challenges.
The former Super Eagles striker spoke at a United Nations high-level event titled “One World, One Game, One Goal: Football for the Goals (FFTG) Initiative” held at the UN Headquarters in New York, where football stars, policymakers and youth advocates discussed the role of sport in promoting mental well-being.
Amokachi said the injury shattered his plans to secure a major club transfer after the World Cup and left him struggling mentally when doctors later told him he could no longer play professional football.
“Before the World Cup in France, a very good friend of mine and I had a plan to end up in Serie A or the Premiership. We had our calculations, but God had His,” Amokachi said.
“We went to the World Cup, I got injured, went under the knife, and six months later, doctors told me I couldn’t play football anymore. That was when mental health challenges hit me.”
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The former Everton forward said the difficult period inspired him to establish the Daniel Amokachi Eduplus Youth Development Foundation, which promotes several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including quality education, good health and well-being, zero hunger, and peace and justice.
Amokachi noted that approaches to addressing mental health differ across regions, saying solutions must reflect local realities.
“When it comes to mental health, the context of addressing it in Europe or America is different from the way you tackle it in Africa,” he said.
He added that sport remains one of the most effective tools for supporting young people experiencing mental health challenges.
“Experience has shown us that mental health issues cannot only be tackled in classrooms or conference rooms but on the field.”
The event was convened by the UN Youth Affairs Office and brought together member states, young leaders, policymakers and athletes, including FIFA ambassador and 2002 World Cup winner Gilberto Silva, former England international Eniola Aluko, and former NBA player and basketball executive Pop Mensah-Bonsu.
Addressing participants, Felipe Paullier, the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, said improving youth mental health is essential to achieving sustainable development.
“Certainly, because of technology, change can sometimes make the future feel unpredictable,” Paullier said.
“But this is certain: young people are not standing still. They have built connections where others see division.”
“In every country I have visited, one issue always comes up: mental health. For young people, mental health is about care and connections.”
A major highlight of the event was the unveiling of the Football for the Goals Champions, with Amokachi becoming the first Nigerian former footballer appointed to the global initiative.
The Football for the Goals programme, launched by the United Nations in partnership with FIFA, mobilises football stakeholders to support the Sustainable Development Goals by using the global reach of the sport to promote health, education, inclusion, equality and sustainable development.
