Her smile says it all when Uchenna Kanu talks about representing Nigeria at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The Racing Louisville forward was officially named to the Nigerian national team’s World Cup roster ahead of the world’s biggest competition, preparing to play for the Super Falcons over the next month in Australia and New Zealand. Even with this being her second trip to the tournament, the emotion behind her selection still carries just as much weight as her debut.
“Playing for my country, it comes with great honor because I represent more than 200 million people back home,” Kanu said. “It means so much me. It’s the biggest stage of my career. I can’t trade that for anything.”
For this World Cup, the 26-year-old Kanu is hoping her new experiences with Racing in the National Women’s Soccer League have prepared her differently for the difficult competition. A dynamic goal scorer who can playing off the left wing or up front as a center forward, Kanu has a goal in 14 appearances and seven starts across all competitions for Louisville.
“The NWSL is really transitional,” Kanu said. “Just playing here and playing in this fast league and against fast players and everything is just so intense and so competitive, I think that has prepared me to play in the World Cup. First, we need fitness to be able to perform. This league has prepared me for that and working toward a transitional player.”
With Nigeria, Kanu is one of the top scoring threats, tallying 10 goals in 25 appearances with the senior national team. She joins a squad that features Barcelona star Asisat Oshoala and fellow NWSL players Ifeoma Onumonu (Gotham) and Michelle Alozie (Houston).
The Super Falcons are hoping to surpass their previous-best performance, a quarterfinals appearance in 1999. They reached the Round of 16 knockout stage in 2019, with Kanu appearing in all four matches and starting one.
“I’m still learning, especially when we have new faces on the team,” Kanu said. “I’m excited to learn more about my new teammates and new coach, but of course it prepared me playing in 2019. I’m excited to be there again and blend in with my teammates and just have fun.”
Kanu could have the chance to even play against one of her Racing teammates in the World Cup, with Nigeria set to play in group stage action against Alex Chidiac and Australia on July 27 in Brisbane.
Beyond that, Kanu said she’s looking forward to seeing her other Racing teammates on the global stage with her. In addition to Chidiac, midfielders Ary Borges (Brazil) and Savannah DeMelo (United States) and forwards Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa) and Wang Shuang (China) will all be World Cup participants Down Under.
“It’s huge to have a club that has so many international players,” Kanu said. “I’m excited to meet my teammates there at the World Cup. It’s great having them there. This is my first NWSL team, and I’m super honored that I’m able to finally play in the NWSL, having dreamt about it. Playing for Louisville and carrying that on to the World Cup, it means a lot.”
