The 2024/25 European football season is underway, with teams in the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga, and beyond already playing several matches, setting the stage for another year of exciting football action. This season provides a new opportunity for African footballers to build on their impressive legacy abroad, following the footsteps of greats like Samuel Eto’o and Riyad Mahrez, whose achievements are firmly entrenched in football history.
Today, we highlight ten African football players who have amassed an impressive collection of trophies, honouring those who have left their mark with their European clubs and national teams.
Samuel Eto’o Fils – 18 trophies: The 43-year-old president of the Cameroonian Football Federation (FECAFOOT) remains one of the best footballers Africa has ever seen. At the height of his prowess, the four-time Africa Footballer of the Year’s strike rate was extraordinary. With over 290 goals in over 530 club matches, Eto’o played for some of the best teams in Europe — Real Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Millan and Chelsea — winning the Champions League at Barcelona (2006, 2009) and Inter Milan (2010). His 18 trophies include an Olympic gold medal and two Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) titles with the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.
Yaya Toure – 18 trophies: The former Barcelona, Manchester City and Ivory Coast midfielder currently serves as an assistant coach for the Saudi Arabia national team. Yaya Touré began his playing career at Ivorian club ASEC Mimosas before having stints with, among others, Olympiacos and Monaco en route to moving to Barcelona in 2007. He represented the Elephants in six Africa Cup of Nations, finishing runner-up in 2006 and 2012, before captaining the side to victory in 2015. The widely travelled Ivorian is on par with Eto’o in the number of trophies won, courtesy of his successful stints with Barcelona and Manchester City. However, Toure only won one Africa Cup of Nations crown, compared to Eto’o’s two.
Seydou Keita – 17 trophies: Another Barcelona legend on the list. In his prime, the versatile midfielder operated, to a significant effect, as a defensive midfielder. He started his youth career in Mali and his professional career with Marseille before his career took him to clubs in France, Spain, China, Italy and Qatar. He enjoyed tremendous success in Spain, winning 2 Champions League and 3 La Liga crowns. Keita represented Mali from age 18, appearing in seven Africa Cup of Nations tournaments and winning 102 caps. Unfortunately, the retired midfielder never landed his hands on an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) crown.
Didier Drogba – 17 trophies: With 65 goals, the retired striker is the all-time top scorer for the Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at Chelsea, where he scored 164 goals to become the Blues’ fourth-highest goal scorer of all time, behind Frank Lampard (211), Bobby Tambling (202) and Kerry Dixon (193). The widely-travelled Ivorian featured for sides in France, China, Turkey, the United States, among others. He won 4 Premier League and a UEFA Champions League crown with Chelsea. Still, the prestigious AFCON title evaded his hands, as he could only lead his Elephants side to runners-up positions in 2006 and 2012. Drogba was synonymous with physical strength, speed, ability in the air, powerful and accurate strikes, and ball retention. He was named African Footballer of the Year in 2006 and 2009. Very active on social issues in Africa, Drogba played a vital role in the peace process in his home country, after which he was appointed a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
Nwankwo Kanu – 17 trophies: One of the two Nigerians on this list. A member of the Arsenal’ Invincibles,’ Kanu is considered one of the greatest African footballers ever. The former forward played for Dutch side Ajax, Inter Milan of Italy, and English clubs Arsenal en route to West Bromwich Albion and Portsmouth. His collection of accolades includes a FIFA U-17 World Cup medal and an Olympics gold medal with Nigeria, a UEFA Champions League medal with Ajax, a UEFA Super Cup, three Eredivisie titles, three FA Cup medals, two Premier League titles with Arsenal, and two African Player of the Year awards, amongst others. He, however, missed out on the AFCON title.
Samuel Kuffour – 15 trophies: The Ghanaian played as a centre-back. Kuffour is widely known for his physical power and best remembered for his time with Bayern Munich, which he represented for over a decade, winning 14 honours and playing in nearly 250 official matches. The 47-year-old also featured for Asante Kotoko in Ghana, Ajax in the Netherlands, Torino, Livorno and AS Roma in Italy. In 2003, Kuffour revealed to the BBC that he wanted to be a priest or a missionary when he retired from football, but that has yet to materialise. He also spoke about the surprised reaction of some German players as he prayed before games. Although he never landed an AFCON title, he led Ghana to the FIFA U-17 World Championship in 1991.
Riyad Mahrez – 14 trophies: The only player still active on this list. During the 2015/2016 season, the Algerian winger who features for Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League was named the Algerian Footballer of the Year and the PFA Players’ Player of the Year as he helped Leicester City win the Premier League title. He then signed for Manchester City in 2018, winning the Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup in his first season. He won four league titles, one FA Cup, two EFL Cups, and a UEFA Champions League in 2022–23 as part of City’s continental treble before leaving for Saudi Arabia. He was one of the stars on show as Algeria’s Desert Foxes won the second AFCON title in 2019 in Egypt courtesy of a 1-0 win over Senegal’s Teranga Lions in the final.
Kwadwo Asamoah – 13 trophies: The 35-year-old former Ghanaian professional footballer mainly played as a left midfielder or left-back and was occasionally deployed as a central midfielder. He began his professional career with the Italian club Udinese in 2008 before earning a transfer to Juventus in 2012, where he played a key role in helping the club to six consecutive Serie A titles between 2013 and 2018, among other titles. He joined Inter Milan in 2018 and Cagliari in 2021, representing Ghana in four African Cup tournaments and two FIFA World Cups. All the 13 titles under his belt were won while playing for Juventus.
Kwadwo Asamoah – 13 trophies: The 35-year-old former Ghanaian professional footballer mainly played as a left midfielder or left-back and was occasionally deployed as a central midfielder. He began his professional career with the Italian club Udinese in 2008 before earning a transfer to Juventus in 2012, where he played a key role in helping the club to six consecutive Serie A titles between 2013 and 2018, among other titles. He joined Inter Milan in 2018 and Cagliari in 2021, representing Ghana in four African Cup tournaments and two FIFA World Cups. All the 13 titles under his belt were won while playing for Juventus.
John Obi Mikel – 11 trophies: The second Nigerian on this list is the defensive midfielder. The 37-year-old former defensive midfielder began his career with local club Plateau United before joining Norwegian club Lyn at the age of 17 in 2004. In 2006, he made a controversial transfer to English club Chelsea after Manchester United claimed they had already signed him. Good tidings were in store, as he stayed with Chelsea for 11 years, winning all 11 titles under his belt, including two Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and the 2011/12 Champions League. After leaving Chelsea, he had brief stints at Tianjin TEDA, Middlesbrough, Trabzonspor and Stoke City. On 27 September 2022, he announced his retirement from professional football at 35.
Oliver Ochieng, bird story agency
