Plenty of talent was on show during the Women's Africa Cup of Nations this month - but why do so few players from the continent play for clubs in England? The Women's Super League is widely regarded as one of the best leagues in the world and Europe's top talent is flooding in. Two-time Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas joined London City Lionesses this summer - the latest figure from Spain's World Cup-winning squad to move to the WSL.
It follows past high-profile moves from foreign players, including Australia captain Sam Kerr who made 158 appearances for Chelsea before joining Gotham. Some of the United States' biggest stars are in the WSL too, including Chelsea duo Alyssa Thompson and Naomi Girma, Arsenal's Emily Fox and Manchester City's Sam Coffey. There has also been an influx of Asian talent in recent seasons, with Japan captain Yui Hasegawa becoming one of the WSL's best players at Manchester City.
BBC Sport explores why the WSL has just four African players - Chiamaka Nnadozie (Brighton and Nigeria), Aisha Masaka (Brighton and Tanzania), Rofiat Imuran (London City Lionesses and Nigeria) and Ines Belloumou (West Ham and Algeria). Why Michaely Bihina is the keeper making waves at Wafcon Cameroon claim first Wafcon title with victory over Malawi African quartet secure Women's World Cup places The small representation in the WSL is not because of a lack of talent in Africa. National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) clubs in America have shown huge interest, spending big money on some of the continent's best players.
Zambia forward Racheal Kundananji became the most expensive women's footballer at the time in 2024 when she joined Bay FC from Madrid CFF for £685,000. Her compatriot Barbra Banda, who plays for Orlando Pride, was voted the BBC Women's Footballer of the Year in the same year. Cameroon's Wafcon player of the tournament Monique Ngock is at Washington Spirit, where six African international players currently reside.
Temwa Chawinga won the NWSL Golden Boot and Most Valuable Player awards in her first two seasons with Kansas City Current. Her sister, Malawi captain Tabitha Chawinga, plays for European giants Lyon and helped her country reach the final of Wafcon last week, where they lost to Cameroon. Michaely Bihina, who was a standout performer in the tournament for Cameroon, plays for Benfica.
Nnadozie, who notably became the first African goalkeeper to be shortlisted for the Women's Ballon d'Or award, joined Brighton last year. The Seagulls goalkeeper ended her season with an FA Cup final appearance at Wembley against WSL champions Manchester City. A major barrier for WSL clubs hoping to sign African talent is the Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) criteria set out in the league's registration rules.
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