Chiamaka Nnadozie has, at the age of 25, earned her place in the pantheon of African goalkeepers alongside legends such as Cameroon’s Thomas N’Kono and Morocco’s Zaki Badou.

Nnadozie featured at her first World Cup finals for Nigeria at 18, then played at the 2023 tournament and is the only goalkeeper to have won the Confederation of African Football’s (Caf’s) Golden Gloves award three times on the trot: in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Nnadozie, a reigning Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) champion, is delighted and amazed that she has come so far, so quickly.

“I’m very surprised,” the Brighton player says of that three-in-a-row record. “I never knew I was the only one, but it’s a morale booster for me. People only see the success, but they don’t see the hard work behind it. But it’s thanks to my coaches and my teammates. It was from a collective effort that one was able to achieve those things.”

Music and football are inseparable for Nnadozie, the undisputed DJ of the Super Falcons. During last year’s triumphant Wafcon campaign in Morocco, she always had a boombox on her shoulders as she strolled into the training grounds in Casablanca and Rabat, with music from the Afrobeat superstars Wizkid, Davido, Rema and Burna Boy (the England coach Sarina Wiegman’s favourite artist) piping hot from the speakers.

“If I’m not carrying that boombox, the players will beat me up,” she jokes. “It’s always on me to make sure I bring the music. It keeps us moving, it gives us the morale … I love to be happy. When I’m happy, you get the best of me. That boombox is like my happiness, you know? We lost the boombox in Morocco. We forgot it inside the bus when we were going to the airport. We have a new one now.”

Nnadozie and Nigeria were supposed to be gunning for a record 11th Wafcon title in Morocco between mid-March and early April, before Caf postponed the tournament until July and August. “We, the players, are not happy about it,” she says bluntly. “We don’t know the reason behind it … we were all prepared. We left our clubs, hoping to go to the Wafcon. I know the fans are angry, the people are angry. It’s frustrating for me too because some of my family members already got their tickets, some had already applied for a visa.”

Nnadozie, though, remains positive about the growth and future of the women’s game in Africa, with Wafcon expanded to a 16-team event in which there will be a tournament debut for Malawi, who have arguably two of the best players in the world, the Chawinga sisters, Tabitha and Tenwa, the NWSL’s most valuable player.

“Women’s football [in Africa] is growing … [but] there’s this thing they always used to say: the universe isn’t on a budget. We can always ask for more.”

Nnadozie, speaking at Brighton’s training ground, has been adjusting to the Women’s Super League and the ambience of the Sussex countryside, a world apart from the glitzy Parisian metropolis where she spent time with Paris FC before moving to England last summer.

“I was convinced to join Brighton because of the way the coach spoke to me. The first time he saw me, he told me: ‘I watch you a lot. I like your qualities, and we think we can use that in this team.’ He explained how they want to work, how they work and what they want to achieve … that caught my attention.

“It’s good to know that I have people here that always tell me: ‘Chi, if you ever want to talk about anything, if you ever need to tell us anything, know it’s an open place where you can come express yourself, express how you feel.’”

Brighton are sixth in the WSL with three matches to play, well off a top-three finish which would deliver a Women’s Champions League place. But Nnadozie is hopeful of a bright future for the club and last Saturday’s stunning 3-2 home win over the leaders, Manchester City, was a positive pointer. “We know we need to work harder, but we’ll get there,” she says. “I believe in my teammates – each and every one of them.”

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