Super Eagles winger Christantus Uche has become the latest Nigerian footballer to win a UEFA trophy after Crystal Palace claimed the UEFA Conference League title, completing a historic treble of European honours for Nigerian players, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
Palace defeated Spanish side Rayo Vallecano 1-0 in the final in Leipzig, with Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring the only goal of the game in the second half after reacting sharply to a rebound from Adam Wharton’s long-range effort that Rayo goalkeeper Augusto Batalla could only parry into the danger zone.
Uche, who was part of Palace’s squad during the group stage of the competition, was removed from the Conference League roster in February to create room for new signings. However, under UEFA regulations, players registered to a club’s squad during a campaign remain eligible for a winners’ medal regardless of whether they featured in the knockout rounds. The governing body presents 50 gold medals to the winning club, with the club’s management retaining full discretion over distribution, meaning Uche is firmly in line to receive one.
The triumph makes him part of an exclusive group of Nigerians to have won UEFA silverware and ensures that Nigerian players have now won all three UEFA club trophies.
Finidi George and Nwankwo Kanu lifted the Champions League with Ajax in 1995, while John Obi Mikel was part of Chelsea’s UCL-winning side in 2012 and a part of the Europa League winning team alongside compatriot Victor Moses in 2013.
Taribo West and Kanu won the UEFA Cup with Inter Milan in 1998, Chidi Odiah was part of CSKA Moscow’s 2005 triumph, and Ademola Lookman wrote himself into Nigerian football history with a hat-trick in Atalanta’s 3-0 Europa League final victory over Bayer Leverkusen in 2024.
The Conference League win rounded off a remarkable European season for Nigerian footballers, with multiple Super Eagles stars claiming several honours with their European clubs in the 2025/26 campaign.
The victory also seals Crystal Palace’s return to the Europa League next season, a competition they were demoted from this year due to multi-club ownership regulations. For the club, it marks a maiden European trophy and a historic moment in their history.
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