Brighton's trailblazer Aisha Masaka: ‘It was my dream to play in Europe'

The Guardian

2 days ago

Aisha Masaka became the first Tanzanian footballer to play in the Women's Super League (WSL) when she signed for Brighton last summer, and she is a pioneer for her country in several ways. Masaka was the first to play in the Champions League, when she was with the Swedish Club BK Häcken, from 2022 to 2024, and recently launched the AKM Foundation, aimed at fighting poverty and promoting gender equality through sport.
Masaka started playing street football as a teenager and dabbled in every other sport available to her including basketball and volleyball, much to her parents' dismay. 'We fought a lot because parents, especially in Africa, find it difficult to allow their girls to play football,' says the 21-year-old. 'They wanted me to go to school and not be involved in any sport at all.'.
However, Masaka persisted and her parents could not hold her back when she was offered a place at the Alliance Academy in the city of Mwanza, on the shores of Lake Victoria. 'When the opportunity came, I told them I had to take it,' Masaka says. 'It was an academic school and a football academy, so that's why they agreed to let me to go there. They said If I was going to study and play then it was OK for them. That's where my career started.'
The academy proved the perfect training ground for Masaka, who from there went to Yanga Princess, the female-affiliate of Tanzania's most successful club team, Young Africans. It was not long before she was on the national radar, and in 2020 was part of the Tanzanian team that participated as invited guests at the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) Under-17 Championship. Tanzania won, beating Zambia on penalties in the final, with Masaka earning the golden boot. She scored 10 goals and had done enough to be spotted by a scout from Europe and offered a deal in Sweden.
It was a big move for a teenager but one Masaka had to take. 'It was my dream to play in Europe, so when that opportunity came I didn't hesitate to take it. I was very excited to go to play in Europe,' she says. 'The environment is different, everything is different and it was my first time living alone, so it was a big change. But I managed well.'
Masaka made her debut for Häcken in the second qualifying-round of the 2022-23 Champions League, against Paris Saint-Germain. Masaka scored five goals in 14 appearances for the club before moving to England. 'It was amazing because everyone at home saw that I was signed for a top league and they looked at it as a big achievement for me and for the country,' she says.
Is Tanzania now filled with Brighton supporters? 'Definitely,' Masaka laughs. 'It's also important for other footballers because the players who play in the top league and the national team look at me and say that I play in a top league and with big players and they know they can do it too.'
Masaka's experiences in the WSL have not quite gone to plan. She made her debut for Brighton as an 87th-minute substitute against Arsenal in November and almost immediately fell, severely injuring her shoulder in the process. She was sidelined for five months, which was hugely frustrating but Masaka used her time out wisely, conceptualising AKM. It was launched last month and well and truly kicked off last weekend with an all-stars charity match, a few days after Masaka received the Female Athlete of the Year award from Tanzania's National Sports Council.
The prize was in recognition of Masaka's international record, namely scoring nine times in 16 appearances for Tanzania and being part of the squad that qualified for this summer's Women's Africa Cup of Nations for only the second time in the country's history. 'It was big pressure,' Masaka says. 'I don't think I have ever experienced that before, but it was amazing for me to qualify for the first time and for the second time as a country. When Tanzania qualified for the first time, I wasn't even playing football.'
Tanzania are in the same group as the defending champions, South Africa, Ghana and Mali and Masaka is hopeful they will acquit themselves. 'I have been a player in two big tournaments: the Champions League and the Women's Super League but the Women's Africa Cup of Nations is so special for me because there I represent the country,' she says. 'I believe we're going to perform well and my dream is to get to the quarter-finals.'
Masaka also hopes Tanzania can qualify for Wafcon again, the process for which begins in March next year. She also has domestic ambitions. 'At Brighton I also hope we can fight and be top four and then to go to Champions League.'
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