FLAMINGOS WATCH — Flamingos star Oluwakemi "Kemi" Adegbuyi has opened up about the hard road behind her football breakthrough, recounting how she trained under rain and scorching sun with no sponsorship or financial support.
In a video interview reported on Tuesday, the 16-year-old forward said her determination to impress her coach, her fans and her family kept her going when conditions were at their toughest — a journey that has now carried her to a FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup title with Nigeria.
- Adegbuyi: "Rain go beat me, we go play under the sun. We nor get sponsors"
- She credits God for easing the challenges she faced on the way up
- Fans online praised her resilience and called for more support for grassroots girls' football
What Adegbuyi said about training under rain and sun
"The time when we dey play football, rain go beat me, we go play under the sun. We nor get sponsors, but I won impress my coach, I won impress my fans and family," Adegbuyi said, recalling her early days in the game.
"I get challenge, but God don make everything easier now, and I thank God," she added.
Her account is strictly her own story, told in her own words: a young player training in harsh weather without sponsors, driven by the people she wanted to make proud. The Roma News report of the interview said her story drew encouraging reactions from Nigerians on social media, with supporters praising her commitment and the way she fights for every ball.
Why Adegbuyi's story resonates after the Flamingos' World Cup win
Adegbuyi's rise gives her words extra weight. She was one of five Flamingos to win a FIFA Player of the Match award at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco — hers came in the 2-0 group win over Puerto Rico, where she also scored — as Nigeria beat Japan 2-1 in the final in Rabat to become the first African country to win the tournament, according to the Nigeria Football Federation.
Before the World Cup, she had been named NWFL Premiership Player of the Season after scoring 11 goals for FC Robo Queens, then moved to Edo Queens and was named Player of the Tournament as they won the WAFU-B qualifiers for the CAF Women's Champions League.
Supporters reacting to her interview also used the moment to argue her wider point: that young female footballers in Nigeria often receive little attention or funding until they achieve international recognition, and that government, companies and sponsors should invest earlier in grassroots talent.
What happens next
Adegbuyi and her Flamingos teammates return home as world champions, with the forward widely tipped as a future star for the Falconets and the senior Super Falcons. For NTN's FLAMINGOS WATCH storyline, her message is the chapter that explains the title: the champions were made long before Morocco, in the rain and under the sun.
Credit: The Roma News report of November 10, 2026, of Kemi Adegbuyi's interview; NFF report of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup final.
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