Daniel Daga, captain of the Nigeria U20 national team and midfielder for Norwegian club Molde FK, has been sentenced to six months in prison by a Norwegian court after being convicted of committing a sexual act against a person who did not consent.
The verdict was delivered on Tuesday by the Nordmøre og Romsdal District Court.
In addition to the custodial sentence, the 19 year old was ordered to pay NOK 10,000 in legal costs approximately N1.45 million in Nigerian currency. The ruling was in line with what the prosecution had requested.
The alleged incident dates back to April 2025. The case was first reported to Norwegian police in late April 2025, with Daga formally charged under Section 297 of the Norwegian Penal Code for committing a sexual act without consent. Molde FK confirmed they cooperated fully with authorities throughout the investigation and suspended the player from all training sessions and match activities pending the conclusion of legal proceedings.
Daga has maintained his innocence throughout the process and is not going down without a fight. His lawyer Astrid Bolstad confirmed that the Nigerian midfielder will appeal the ruling, insisting her client believes the encounter was entirely consensual. “He is terribly sorry that the verdict was the way it was. He believes he is innocent and that everything happened with consent. He will appeal the verdict,” Bolstad told TV 2 Norway. Because an appeal has been filed, the verdict is not yet legally binding and will be processed further in the Norwegian legal system.
Molde FK confirmed that Daga will not be part of the match squad until further notice due to the situation and the ongoing legal process.
Daga joined Molde ahead of the 2025 season after excelling for Enyimba in the Nigeria Premier Football League, making 15 appearances for the Norwegian side and scoring three goals. At international level he was the youngest player named in Nigeria’s squad for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup, starting all the team’s matches until they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by South Korea.
He represented the Flying Eagles again at the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup where Nigeria were knocked out 4-0 by Argentina in the round of 16.
The Nigeria Football Federation has not issued any statement on the verdict at the time of this report.
