Born on 1967,former Nigeria International footballer and former Coach of the Nigeria Senior national football team, the Super Eagles, Samson Siasia was born in Lagos State, Southwest Nigeria.
Also known by his nickname “World Cup”, Siasia most notably played for the French team FC Nantes where he became league champion in 1994/95.
He also played for Australian club Perth Glory with fellow Nigerian Peter Anosike, as well as in Belgium where he started his European sojourn as a 20-year-old in 1987, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, and Israel.
Siasia played 51 international matches for Nigeria, scored thirteen goals, and was part of the team that participated in the 1994 FIFA World Cup finals in the United State where he scored a fantastic 7 minute opener against Argentina on the 25th of June 1994 at the Fox Borough Stadium in Boston.
Before the World Cup, he had won the 1994 African Nations Cup on April 10, 1994, at the famous El-Menza Stadium in Tunis, helping Nigeria to beat Zambia 2-1 in the final.
He was also a member of the Nigerian team that won bronze at the 1992 Africa Nations Cup in Senegal.
He participated in the National Team over a period of 11 years and was recognized in Nigeria as the third leading scorer for the National Team.
He is also regarded as one of the best managers in Nigeria’s history.
At a time he was rated by the World football governing body as the 15th best Coach in the World.
As a Coach, he has an African Championship gold medal which he won with the Flying Eagles in 2005, a World Youth Championships silver medal which he won with the Flying Eagles in 2005, an Intercontinental Cup gold medal which he won with the Dream Team in Malaysia in 2008, Olympic Silver medal which he won in 2008 with the Dream Team, an Africa Under-23 Championships gold which he won with the Dream team in 2015, an All Africa Games bronze medal which he won with the Dream Team in 2015 and an Olympic bronze medal which he won with the Dream Team in 2016.
As an assistant Coach of the Super Eagles under Austin Eguavoen in 2006, he won a bronze medal with Nigeria at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.