D-8 to the Women’s AFCON: Onome Ebi, Record-Breaker and Symbol of Longevity
The countdown to the CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations has officially begun. To mark the occasion, CAFOnline.com invites you to relive some of the standout moments from the competition, now approaching its 13th edition. Today, we look back at the journey of a woman who has featured in seven editions of the tournament: Onome Ebi.
Only 8 days to go until the CAF TotalEnergies Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
In the history of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, few players can compete with the longevity and impact of Onome Ebi. An emblematic central defender of Nigeria, she remains the most capped player of the tournament, with seven appearances to her credit.
Ebi has played in seven editions of the Women's AFCON: 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2022. Across generations, opponents and styles of play, she has established herself as a central figure in the Super Falcons, an essential defensive pillar and a model of consistency.
Her continental record is simply remarkable: four titles won (2010, 2014, 2016, 2018) and a presence in all of Nigeria's major campaigns for more than fifteen years. Each time, Ebi held her ground, solid on her feet, lucid in her reading, sober in her attitude. A natural leader, respected and listened to.
"Each African Cup has its own requirements. It's never a formality, even for a team like Nigeria," she said at the 2018 AFCON in Ghana, which ended with a victory over South Africa.
If her statistics are impressive — more than 100 international caps, four AFCON wins, five World Cups played — it is above all his consistency at the very highest level that commands respect. On the pitch, as in the locker room, she embodied for more than a decade the high standards and pride of wearing the Super Falcons jersey.
"As the oldest member of the group, I had a moral duty: to motivate the young people, to set an example. You don't stay in the national team with your past, you stay there with your rigor," she said in 2022, during her last appearance in the finals.
Her last AFCON, in Morocco in 2022, did not lead to a title, but it will remain as the ultimate symbol of his loyalty to Nigeria and his attachment to this competition that has punctuated her career.
Today, Onome Ebi occupies a special place in the archives of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, engraved over the editions, the titles and the example she has left.
