Rasheedat Busayo Ajibade (born 8 December 1999) 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

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for Spanish

Liga F The Primera División de la Liga de Fútbol Femenino, currently known as the Liga F (finetwork Liga F for sponsorship reasons), is the highest level of Sports league, league competition for women's football in Spain. It is the women's equivalent ...

club

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...

and the Nigeria women's national team. She is commonly called "Rash", a shortened form of her first name, and "The Girl With The Blue Hair", an ode to her bright blue hairstyle which she dons whenever she takes to the field. Ajibade represented

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, ...

at age grade competitions, before making her competitive debut for the senior team at the 2018 WAFU Cup in

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

. In 2017, she was named first in a top 10 list of most promising young footballers on the African continent by ''Goal.com''.

Club career

Ajibade played for

FC Robo FC Robo Queens is a Nigerian women's association football club based in Mushin, Lagos and a member of the Nigerian Women Football League (NWFL). They have competed in the Nigeria Women Premier League, the highest division for women association f ...

from the 2013

Nigeria Women Premier League The NWFL Premiership (formerly Nigeria Women Premier League) is the top-level league for women's association football in Nigeria. It is the women's equivalent of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) for male players. The Nigeria Wome ...

season till 2018 season. In 2014, she was listed as one of the best young talents in the league. In September 2018, she won the Nigerian women football freestyle competition for the second consecutive time. During the

2015 Nigeria Women Premier League The 2015 Nigeria Women Premier League is the 25th season of women's association football in Nigeria, and the second season since the re-branding of the competition from a championship to a premier league. The league started in May 2015, and the reg ...

week 2 games, Ajibade was listed in the team of the week, compiled by '' Soccerladuma South Africa'', despite her team losing to

Confluence Queens Confluence Queens F.C. sometimes referred to as Wada Queens and Kogi Confluence Queens is a Nigerian women's association football club based in Lokoja, Kogi State. They play their home games at Confluence Stadium, and compete in the Nigeria Wom ...

during the round of matches. For the

2017 Nigeria Women Premier League The 2017 Nigeria Women Premier League began on March 25, 2017. The date was fixed during the congress for women football league system in Nigeria on February 22, 2017, in Abuja, which had the Minister for Sports, Solomon Dalung in attendance. Ma ...

season, Ajibade was made team captain of

. Ajibade was one of the scorers in Robos' home win against Ibom Angels during the season. On 13 July 2017, after losing to visitors

Rivers Angels Rivers Angels F.C. (formerly Larry Angels F.C.) is a Nigerian professional football club based in Port Harcourt, Rivers State in Nigeria. They play in the Nigeria Women Premier League, the top flight in the national female soccer league pyramid ...

, Ajibade was quoted by '' SuperSport'' to rue her team chances of qualifying for ''Super 4'', because of the difference in points and the limited number of games remaining. Ajibade won the first edition of Nigeria National Freestyle Championship, which is a competition to promote freestyling football. In 2017, despite Robo not being among teams that finished tops, Ajibade was voted player of the season after scoring eight goals to save her team from relegation. In May 2018, she was nominated as the best player in the

Nigeria Pitch Awards The Nigeria Pitch Awards are awards presented to Nigerian former and present sports people, administrators and journalists in recognition of their positive contributions to sports in Nigeria. Initiated by Matchmakers Consult International Limited ...

. In December 2018, Ajibade was reported to have signed a two-year contract with Norwegian side,

Avaldsnes IL Avaldsnes Idrettslag is a Norwegian sports club from Avaldsnes, Karmøy, Rogaland. It was founded on 16 June 1937. The club has sections for football and handball. Women's football The women's team began play in 1989, winning the 1st Division o ...

, a team that plays in the

Toppserien The Toppserien is the top level of women's association football in Norway. It was founded in 1984. History Women's league football was introduced on a county basis in 1977. These leagues acted as qualification for the regional (South) league in ...

. On January 1, 2021, Atletico Madrid announced the signing of Rasheedat Ajibade on a two-year deal. In January 2022, Rasheedat Ajibade extended her contract with Atletico Madrid for a further three years, until 2025.

International career

Rasheedat Ajibade has represented Nigeria at under-17, under-20 and senior national team. In the African qualifiers, en route to the

2014 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup The 2014 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup was the fourth edition of the youth association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who alm ...

, Ajibade scored a brace for Nigeria first leg win over Namibia. At the competition proper, Ajibade scored the winning goal in Nigeria's first game against

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. In the final group game against

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, Ajibade scored a goal in Nigeria, two goal win to seal a quarter final game with

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Ajibade was named in Coach Bala Nikiyu 21-man squad for

2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup The 2016 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup was the fifth edition of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, the biennial international Women's association football, women's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-17 national t ...

, wearing jersey number 10. At the competition, Ajibade was the captain of

, and spoke to ''FIFA.com'' on the determination of the team to do better than the quarter-final finish they had in 2014. Ajibade was also part of

players at

2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup The 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was the 8th edition of the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, the biennial international Women's association football, women's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-20 national te ...

, she was named man-of-the-match in the second group game against

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In the first round encounter to determine Africa's representative at

2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup The 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was the ninth edition of the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, the biennial international women's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its i ...

, Ajibade scored a brace in the first leg tie against Tanzania, that gave Nigeria a three-goal advantage before the return leg in Dar e Sallam. In the return leg, played in October 2017, Ajibade scored two goals in Nigeria six goal win against the home-side. On 27 January 2018, Ajibade scored two goals in Nigeria's six goal win against

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, the win confirmed

's qualification for the

in France. In February 2018, Ajibade alongside Joy Jegede, Osarenoma Igbinovia and 18 other players were selected by head coach,

Thomas Dennerby Thomas Lennart Dennerby (born 13 August 1959) is a Swedish football manager. He managed Sweden to a third place finish at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup. He last served as the head coach of the India women's football team. Career Dennerby, the ...

to represent Nigeria at the inaugural edition of WAFU Cup in Côte d'Ivoire. In the second group game of the regional tournament, Ajibade scored a hat-trick to take Nigeria to the semi-finals with a game left. Ajibade was part of the

2018 African Nations Championship The 2018 African Nations Championship, known as the 2018 CHAN for short and for sponsor (commercial), sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies, Total African Nations Championship, was the 5th edition of the biennial association football tournam ...

Nigeria women's national football team The Nigeria women's national football team, nicknamed the Super Falcons, represents Nigeria in international women's association football, women's football and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF). The team is Africa's most s ...

where she won the tournament alongside the team. She captained the Super Falcons for the first time in a 1-0 friendly victory over Slovenian club, Olimpija Lubijana in Vienna, Austria. On 24 May 2019, Ajibade was called up to the Nigeria squad for the

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football, football championship contested by 24 List of women's national association football teams, women's ...

. Ajibade was called up to the Nigeria squad for the

2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations The 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations (, ), (also referred to as WAFCON 2022) officially known as the 2022 TotalEnergies Women's Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship purposes, was the 14th edition of the biennial African international women's ...

. On 16 June 2023, she was included in the 23-player Nigerian squad for the

FIFA Women's World Cup 2023 The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup was the ninth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international women's football championship contested by women's national teams and organised by FIFA. The tournament, which took place from 2 ...

. During the Olympic qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympics, Ajibade scored a crucial penalty for the Super Falcons in their match against South Africa. This victory secured Nigeria's qualification for the competition, which begins in July 2024. Ajibade was called up to the Nigeria squad for the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

International goals

Personal life

In the summer of 2020, Rasheedat Ajibade launched the annual #StandOutWithRASH campaign, in partnership with leading Nigerian athlete branding company, EaglesTracker. It is a social media campaign aimed at promoting grassroots football talents within Nigeria. Rasheedat Ajibade uses her social media platform to provide visibility, encouragement, as well as football boots, jerseys and cash prizes to aspiring footballers who show how they stand out on the football field. She also launched her official brand, RASH, which features a unique merchandise collection available for purchase to fans online. The brand is also involved in several other efforts within Nigeria. Rasheedat Ajibade Foundation recently launched a footballer-focused medical outreach, partnering with The Balm InfusClinic to educate players on life-saving techniques. The program, conducted in Lagos, Nigeria, included CPR and first aid training for FC Robo Queens and Ighalo Football Academy. Atletico Madrid star Rasheedat Ajibade, who initiated the foundation, aims to empower Nigerian youths. Known for her football achievements, including success with Atletico de Madrid and contributions to Nigeria's national team, Her foundation demonstrates a commitment to both sports and community empowerment. Ajibade is a devout

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

, and in a 2022 match for the national team after scoring a goal she wore a t-shirt under her jersey with written "Thank You Jesus".

Other work

Rasheedat Ajibade was announced as a brand ambassador for Pluralcode, and subsequently launched the RASHxPluralcode Tech Scholarship in March 2023, partnering with Pluralcode Academy on a scholarship program to provide free tech training in UI/UX design and Web Development to 60 Nigerians annually.

Honours

Atlético Madrid *

Copa de la Reina Copa or COPA may refer to: COPA COPA may refer to: * Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet * Canadian Owners and Pilots Association * Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association * Parlia ...

2022–23 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 ...

Supercopa de Espana Supercopa can refer to: *Supercopa de España (disambiguation) *Supercopa do Brasil, a Brazilian football (soccer) competition. *Supercopa Honduras, a defunct Honduran football (soccer) competition. *Supercopa de Costa Rica, a Costa Rican Football ...

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 ...

Nigeria *

Women's Africa Cup of Nations The Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies Women's Africa Cup of Nations and formerly the African Women's Championship, is a biennial international women's football tournament organized by ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

WAFU Women's Cup The WAFU Zone B Women's Cup is a women's association football competition contested by national teams of Zone B of the West African Football Union The West African Football Union (; ), officially abbreviated as WAFU-UFOA and WAFU, is a sports ...

third place:

Individual * Women's Africa Cup of Nations Top scorer:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

* Women's Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament:

Team of the Season:

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

* League Bloggers Award NWPL Player of the Season:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

NWPL Player of the season:

Top scorer:

(jointly held with Reuben Charity) *

Nigeria Football Federation The Nigeria Football Federation (known as Nigeria Football Association until 2008) is Nigeria's association football, football sports governing body, governing body. It was formally launched in 1945 and formed the first Nigerian national football ...

Young Player Of The Year: 2018

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ajibade, Rasheeday 1999 births Living people Sportspeople from Lagos State Nigerian women's footballers 21st-century Nigerian sportswomen Women's association football forwards FC Robo players Avaldsnes IL players Atlético Madrid Femenino players Toppserien players Nigeria women's international footballers 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup players Nigerian expatriate women's footballers Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Norway Expatriate women's footballers in Norway Nigerian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Expatriate women's footballers in Spain Nigerian Christians 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup players Footballers at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Nigeria