freestyle footballer Evelyn Okafor is continuing to make her mark on the international stage, building a reputation as one of Africa’s leading female freestyle footballers.
Okafor, who has won the Nigerian freestyle football championship four times and the African title three times, has become an important figure in the growth of freestyle football among young women in Nigeria.
Her journey has taken her beyond national competitions to the global stage. In 2022, she became one of the Nigerian representatives at the Red Bull Street Style World Final in Pula, Croatia, after winning the African women’s title. The World Freestyle Football Association described her performances as featuring strong control across upper-body, lower-body and transition techniques.
Her international appearances have continued. Okafor was among the athletes listed for the 2024 World Freestyle Football Championship in Turin, Italy, representing Nigeria through the Pulse Algiers qualification route.
She has also remained dominant at home.
In October 2025, Okafor successfully defended her women’s title at the Predator Energy Freestyle Football Championship in Lagos, organised in partnership with the World Freestyle Football Association. The competition attracted 128 entries nationwide, with 12 finalists eight men and four women eventually competing for the national titles.
Okafor finished ahead of Miracle Ngozi, who placed second, and Augustina Unamba, who came third. She received a ₦1 million prize for winning the women’s category.
Her record in the sport stretches back several years. She won the women’s African Freestyle Football Championship in 2019, defeating Tanzania’s Hadhara Charles and fellow Nigerian Augustina Unamba.
She also remained a leading competitor during the COVID-19 period, finishing second in the women’s category of the 2020 Nigerian virtual freestyle championship while holding the African women’s title at the time.
The World Freestyle Football Association’s rankings continue to list Okafor among the world’s leading female freestyle footballers. Its latest published ranking places her 37th globally, making her one of the highest-ranked African women in the discipline.
Beyond the medals, Okafor’s story is significant because freestyle football remains a relatively young and less conventional sporting discipline compared with traditional football. Her visibility provides young girls with another way to participate in football not necessarily through the traditional 11-a-side game, but through a sport that combines football technique, athleticism, creativity and individual expression.
Her message to girls is equally important: dream beyond what appears possible.
For a young girl watching her perform, the lesson goes beyond keeping a ball in the air. It is about confidence, discipline and understanding that talent can create opportunities when it is developed consistently.
Okafor’s rise also reflects the growing freestyle football ecosystem in Nigeria. National competitions organised with the World Freestyle Football Association have created opportunities for athletes to compete, earn prize money and gain international exposure. The 2025 Nigerian championship, for example, brought together athletes from across the country and included judges from Nigeria, South Africa and Morocco, giving the competition a distinctly continental character.
From national championships to African titles and appearances on the world stage, Evelyn Okafor’s journey demonstrates how Nigerian women are finding new ways to make their presence felt in sport.
Her story is not simply about football tricks. It is about a Nigerian woman creating space for herself in a global sporting community and encouraging the next generation of girls to believe that their own dreams are worth pursuing.
TNAM
By Egwu Patience Nnennaya
Friday August 14th, 2026.
