Nigeria arrive at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations intent on extending their record haul to 11 titles, but forward Asisat Oshoala says lifting another trophy would be only part of what constitutes success. The six-time African Women’s Footballer of the Year, who is chasing a fifth WAFCON crown, urged organizers to focus on wider improvements around the event.
“I’m looking forward to Nigeria winning it again,” Oshoala said during a CAF media roundtable. “That’s always the goal, but with every edition there also has to be improvement, both on and off the pitch.” She called for larger crowds, more marketing and greater commercial opportunities to raise the tournament’s profile.
Oshoala pointed to the previous edition’s online attention and improved media coverage as a platform to build on. “If there’s even more promotion this time, it will help spread African women’s football to people who still don’t know enough about it,” she said, urging expanded awareness efforts to reach new audiences.
The forward’s observations are informed by a career that spans multiple continents. Since making her first WAFCON appearance in 2014, Oshoala has played in England, China, Spain, the United States with Bay FC and now Saudi Arabia with Al Hilal. She described her journey as “an amazing journey” and said football allowed her to experience different cultures and opportunities she had not imagined.
The text notes how far the landscape has shifted from 26 years ago, when Mercy Akide became the first African woman to establish a professional career abroad by playing college soccer in the United States and then joining the San Diego Spirit in the WUSA. At that time, opportunities for women’s football were scarce and recognition outside Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and South Africa was limited.
Today, African internationals are starring for some of the world’s biggest clubs, breaking transfer records and collecting individual honours, with players such as Zambia captain Barbara Banda cited as global faces of the women’s game. Oshoala highlighted the Morocco final’s atmosphere as evidence of progress while noting that stadiums were not always full unless the host nation was involved, underlining the need for continued media and promotional work.
