When the final whistle blew in San Jose, Washington Spirit didn’t lift the NWSL Championship trophy — but Nigeria lifted its head high.
Because even in defeat, Gift Monday and Deborah Abiodun stood tall, carrying the green-white-green onto one of world football’s biggest stages with heart, courage, and purpose.
A Goal for Her Father, A Performance for Nigeria
For Gift Monday, this playoff run was more than football.
Just days before scoring the most emotional goal of her NWSL season, she was in Nigeria, burying her father — the man who first believed she could become something extraordinary.
“He was my first coach,” she said. “He taught me to keep believing and keep moving.”
She returned to the U.S., grieving but determined.
And in the quarterfinal, cramping in her groin, hamstring, adductor, and calf, she refused to come off the pitch before honoring him.
Her header shook the stadium — and moved millions watching across Nigeria.
The celebration said everything: hand cupped to her ear, soaking in the love, feeling the strength of a father she could no longer see…but could still hear.
Deborah Abiodun: The Engine Beside Her
Beside Monday stood Deborah Abiodun, one of the most exciting young midfielders in world football. Calm on the ball, fearless off it, and relentless in her pressing, she showed the maturity of a player far beyond her years.
In many ways, Monday and Abiodun represent the two sides of the Nigerian football spirit:
Fire and fight.
Composure and intelligence.
Skill wrapped in steel.
Two women, one nation, one heartbeat.
A Team They Lost To — But A Story They Won
The Spirit didn’t win the title.
But Monday and Abiodun won something deeper: they won admiration, respect, and a new wave of Nigerian fans who followed every step of their playoff journey.
And it happened at a moment when Nigerian women’s football is rising globally:
CAF Team of the Year (2023, 2024, 2025)
The Super Falcons have been crowned Africa’s Best National Team three years running — a testament to a golden generation.
Gift Monday and Abiodun are part of that wave.
And on the NWSL stage, they showed exactly why.
Carrying More Than The Badge
Monday’s courage extended far beyond 90 minutes.
Her teammates spoke with awe about her professionalism — smiling through grief, lifting others even as she carried her own pain.
Washington Spirit players, coaches, and staff surrounded her with love, proof of a team culture that values mental health as much as tactics.
But Nigerians watching knew the deeper truth:
She was playing for her father.
And for her country.
Nigeria Saw Them. Nigeria Felt Them. Nigeria Celebrates Them.
Championships are measured in trophies.
Legacies are measured in moments.
Even without a medal, this was a defining moment for Nigerian women in sport — a reminder that our athletes don’t just compete…
They inspire.
They endure.
They rise.
Gift Monday rose through grief.
Deborah Abiodun rose through the pressure.
And together, they carried Nigeria into global view once again.
This wasn’t just a game.
It was a statement.
A promise.
A preview.
If this is the future of the Super Falcons,
Nigeria is in extraordinary hands.
