The development of football in Nigeria owes a lot to the pioneering Christian missions in the country, especially, the schools they founded. This article examines the particular role that selected Catholic Mission Boys’ Secondary Schools played in this regard from 1904 when the first recorded football match was played in Nigeria, to 1994, when Nigeria’s national football team, the Super Eagles, qualified for the World Cup for the first time. This way, the article contributes to existing literature on: a) the history and development of football in Nigeria b) the role of Christian missions in the development of modern Nigeria c) the relationship between Christianity and sports, in this case, football.

中文翻译：

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教会学校在尼日利亚足球发展中的作用，1904 年至 1994 年

尼日利亚足球的发展很大程度上要归功于该国开拓性的基督教传教事业，特别是他们创办的学校。本文探讨了从 1904 年尼日利亚举行第一场有记录的足球比赛到 1994 年尼日利亚国家足球队超级鹰队获得世界杯参赛资格期间，选定的天主教传教男子中学在这方面所发挥的特殊作用。第一次。通过这种方式，本文对以下方面的现有文献做出了贡献：A）尼日利亚足球的历史和发展b)基督教宣教在现代尼日利亚发展中的作用C）基督教与体育（在本例中为足球）之间的关系。