Akinkunmi Ayobami Amoo (born 7 June 2002) is a Nigerian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a winger for Shanghai Jiading Huilong.

Early life

Amoo was born in

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the List of Nigerian cities by population, third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano (city), Kano, with a total populatio ...

, and started playing youth football at Brightville Academy. In his teens, he moved to

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

to join Sidos FC.

Club career

Hammarby IF

2020

On 8 June 2020, shortly after his 18th birthday, Amoo transferred to Swedish club

Hammarby IF Hammarby Idrottsförening ("Hammarby Sports Club"), commonly known as Hammarby IF or simply Hammarby ( or, especially locally, ), is a Swedish sports club located in Stockholm, with a number of member organizations active in a variety of differ ...

on a four-year contract. In the process, he reportedly turned down a move to

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

and

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

. Amoo made his competitive debut in

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; ), also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan (, ) is a professional association football league in Sweden and the highest level of the Swedish football league system. Founded in 1924, it operates on a system of promotion and relegatio ...

on 14 September, in a 2–2 home draw against

Helsingborgs IF Helsingborgs Idrottsförening, commonly referred to as Helsingborgs IF, Helsingborg or (especially locally) HIF (), is a Swedish professional football club located in Helsingborg. They play in the Swedish second tier, Superettan, following releg ...

. On 10 November, Amoo scored a brace, his first competitive goals for Hammarby IF, in a 5–0 win against

FC Gute FC Gute, previously named ''Visby IF Gute'', is a Sweden, Swedish Association football, football club located in Visby on the island of Gotland. They currently play in the fourth-tier league Swedish football Division 2, Division 2 Norra Svealand. ...

Svenska Cupen Svenska cupen (, ), also known as the Swedish Cup in English, is a knockout cup competition in Swedish football and the main Swedish football cup. ''Svenska cupen'' usually refers to the men's tournament, although a women's tournament is also ...

, the main domestic cup.

2021

In 2021, following the departure of

Alexander Kačaniklić Alexander Kačaniklić ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Качаниклић; ; ; born 13 August 1991) is a Swedish former professional association football, footballer. He normally operated as a Midfielder#Winger, winger but could also play as a ...

, Amoo established himself as a regular starter for Hammarby. On 7 March, he scored a long-range strike against

rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

AIK in a 3–2 home win in Svenska Cupen, which meant that his side advanced to the quarter-finals of the tournament. On 17 April, Amoo scored his first league goal in Allsvenskan for the club, in a 2–0 home win against

Mjällby AIF Mjällby Allmänna Idrottsförening, also known simply as Mjällby AIF, Mjällby or (especially locally) MAIF, is a Swedish professional football club based in Hällevik in Sölvesborg Municipality. The club is affiliated to Blekinge Fo ...

. On 30 May, Amoo won the

2020–21 Svenska Cupen The 2020–21 Svenska Cupen was the 65th season of the Svenska Cupen and the ninth season with the current format. Hammarby won the cup for the first time and secured a spot in the second qualifying round of the 2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference Le ...

with Hammarby, through a 5–4 win on penalties (0–0 after full-time) against

BK Häcken Bollklubben Häcken, more commonly known as BK Häcken or simply Häcken (), is a Swedish professional association football, football club based in Gothenburg (Hisingen). It currently plays in Allsvenskan, the top tier of Swedish football. Forme ...

in the final. He featured in all six games as the side reached the play-off round of the

2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League The 2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League was the inaugural season of the UEFA Europa Conference League, Europe's tertiary club football tournament organised by UEFA. The final was played at the Arena Kombëtare in Tirana, Albania, with Rom ...

, after eliminating

Maribor Maribor ( , , ; also known by other #Name, historical names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is the seat of the ...

(4–1 on aggregate) and

FK Čukarički Fudbalski klub Čukarički () is a Serbian professional football club from Belgrade, more precisely from the Čukarica municipality, that currently plays in the Serbian SuperLiga, the top tier of Serbian football. Founded in 1926, the club spe ...

(6–4 on aggregate), where the club was knocked out by

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

(4–4 on aggregate) after a penalty shoot-out. Following his performances throughout the year, Amoo reportedly attracted interest from big European clubs like

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * Ajax (play), ''Ajax'' (play), by the an ...

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

and

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

. He was one of three finalists for Allsvenskan young player of the year, that ultimately was awarded to

Veljko Birmančević Veljko Birmančević ( sr-cyr, Вељко Бирманчевић; born 5 March 1998) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Czech First League club Sparta Prague and the Serbia national team. Club career P ...

from

Malmö FF Malmö Fotbollförening (), commonly known simply as Malmö FF or MFF, is a Swedish professional football club based in Malmö, Scania. They compete in the Allsvenskan, the top division of Swedish football, and play home matches at the Eleda S ...

F.C. Copenhagen

On 31 January 2022, Amoo signed a five-year deal with

F.C. Copenhagen Football Club Copenhagen (, ), commonly known as F.C. København, F.C. Copenhagen, Copenhagen, or simply FCK, is a Danish professional football club based in Copenhagen. FCK was founded in 1992 as a superstructure on top of Kjøbenhavns Boldklub ...

in the

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...

. The fee was reportedly set at around €4.4 million, plus bonuses and a sell-on clause, making it a record breaking transfer for Hammarby. He also became one of Copenhagen's record arrivals, in the same region as Pep Biel and

Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson (born 23 March 2003) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for German club Fortuna Düsseldorf and the Iceland national team. Club career ÍA Having been born outside of Iceland, while ...

Omonia

On 13 September 2023, Amoo signed a three-year deal with Omonia. On 2 March 2024, Amoo terminated his contract with Omonia for personal reasons. In February 2025, Amoo joined

China League One The Chinese Football League 1 (), also known as China League One or Chinese Jia League (), is the second level of professional football in China, under the Chinese Super League. The league is under the auspices of the Chinese Football Association ...

side Shanghai Jiading Huilong.

International career

Amoo began his international career with Nigeria in the 2019 Africa U-17 Cup of Nations, and scored in his debut in a 5–4 group stage win against

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

, where they finished fourth in the tournament. Later the same year, Amoo was part of the Nigerian squad that got knocked out in the round of 16 during the 2019 U-17 World Cup. In early 2022, Amoo was sought out by

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

head coach Augustine Eguavoen for the

2021 Africa Cup of Nations The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (also referred to as AFCON 2021 or CAN 2021), known as the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's ass ...

, as a replacement for

Odion Ighalo Odion Jude Ighalo (born 16 June 1989) is a Nigerian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Saudi Pro League club Al Wehda FC, Al-Wehda. After starting his career at Nigerian clu ...

who had to withdraw from the tournament, but the call-up was not granted by the

Confederation of African Football The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is the administrative and controlling body for association football, beach soccer, and futsal in Africa. It was established on 8 February 1957 at the ''Grand Hotel'' in Khartoum, Sudan. At the FIFA Co ...

Style of play

A left-footed player, Amoo is known for his pace, ball control and technical ability. As an inverted winger, he is prone to dribble and cut inside from the flank. Due to his small stature, low centre of gravity and agility, Amoo has been compared with

Lionel Messi Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (; born 24 June 1987) is an Argentine professional Association football, footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for and Captain (association football), captains both Major League Soccer ...

in his native country, even gaining the nickname "portable" by his teammate Kelechi Iheanacho.

Rape and sexual assault convictions

In September 2022, Amoo was arrested and detained for charges related to

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act of sexual abuse in which one intentionally Physical intimacy, sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or Coercion, coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their w ...

s in

Copenhagen, Denmark Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the Øresund strait. The Øres ...

. According to reports the incident occurred between April 2022 through August 2022 leading to his arrest in September 2022. He was granted bail in October 2022 after being detained for one month. Amoo has been charged with rape in a sexual relationship other than intercourse, defamation as well as attempted rape and violations of two other women. On June 27, 2023 several Nigeria media outlets revealed that Amoo had been sentenced to one year in prison for sexual assaults. Following an unsuccessful appeal against the convictions in June 2024, Danish media named Amoo as the perpetrator and confirmed the convictions.

Career statistics

Honours

Hammarby IF *

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Amoo, Akinkunmi 2002 births Living people Nigerian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Nigeria men's youth international footballers Allsvenskan players Danish Superliga players Cypriot First Division players Hammarby Fotboll players F.C. Copenhagen players AC Omonia players Nigerian expatriate men's footballers Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Sweden Expatriate men's footballers in Sweden Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus Footballers from Ibadan Sportspeople convicted of crimes Nigerian people convicted of rape People convicted of indecent assault People convicted of attempted rape Prisoners and detainees of Denmark Nigerian people imprisoned abroad 21st-century Nigerian sportsmen Expatriate men's footballers in China Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in China Shanghai Jiading Huilong F.C. players