Simi Awujo: The Manchester United & WSL Midfielder Coding Her Own Future

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Manchester United midfielder Simi Awujo (number 13) emerging from the Kingsmeadow tunnel for the Women’s FA Cup, clutching her boots and pre-match nutrition, with the Adobe WFA Cup branding and a sea of fans in United red behind her. Photo Credit: Simi Awujo/Instagram

There is a version of Simisola Feyishayo Awujo that exists only in a child’s imagination — a little girl in Atlanta, watching her dad cheer for Barcelona, chasing a ball around with her older brother Jide and dreaming of something she could not yet name. That little girl could not have known that one day she would walk out at Old Trafford as a Manchester United player. But here she is.

At just 22, Simi Awujo‘s story already reads like someone twice her age — and she is only just getting started. Born in Atlanta, Georgia on 23rd September 2003 to two Nigerian parents from Lagos and Idanre, raised in Canada, schooled at the University of Southern California where she studied computer science and business while playing at the highest collegiate level, and now a midfielder for Manchester United Women in the English Women’s Super League. She has played at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and scored a memorable goal against Chelsea in the Women’s FA Cup earlier this year that had everyone asking the same question — who is she?

The answer, as it turns out, is a lot of things at once. She is Nigerian by roots, Canadian by international allegiance, a self-described nerd who genuinely loves coding, a footballer who grew up speaking Yoruba and eating ogbono soup and a young woman who carries every part of herself into every room she walks into. We sat down with Simi to talk about all of it — the Nigerian household she grew up in, the brother who shaped her game, the full circle moment of signing for Manchester United and what she is listening to on repeat right now. This is Simi Awujo.

Midfielder Simi Awujo in deep focus during a Canada Soccer training session, wearing a maroon training top with a yellow mesh bib and black Canada-branded shorts, skillfully controlling a yellow and blue football on a grass pitch. Photo Credit: Simi Awujo/Instagram

Before we get into everything, we just want to know: How are you and how has 2026 been treating you so far?

I’m doing well. 2026 has been good so far. It’s been nice to be back with the team and to have accomplished so many things thus far in the season and the milestones that we’ve reached thus far have been really good, really good feelings all around.

Atlanta, Canada, USC, Manchester United. Your life has covered a lot of ground for someone who is only 22. How do you carry all of those parts of yourself simultaneously?

Yes, I’ve been various places and I am still quite young, but I do think that it’s important for me to honour my parents and honour the way that I grew up and carry that part of me into every environment so that I can show up as authentically as I can.

Your parents are both Nigerian, both born in Nigeria. Growing up in Atlanta and then Canada, how present was Nigeria in your home? What did that look like day to day?

I would say that Nigeria was pretty present in my home. Both my parents are Nigerian, so I grew up here in Yoruba. I grew up eating Nigerian food, so it was very much a part of my culture. I grew up around a lot of family. My grandma used to live with us and take care of us, so it was very much part of who I was growing up.

Have you ever visited Nigeria? And if you have, what is your strongest memory of it? If you have not, what is the one thing you are most curious about?

Yes, I have visited Nigeria. I’d been when I was younger and I’ve gone most recently since 2021, every December after that, barring one. My strongest memory from when I was younger was probably being with my mom and walking around one of the markets with her as she needed to purchase some things. One of the stronger memories from when I was older was when me and my family, including extended family, were going to meet in Nigeria for Christmas to celebrate with my grandma, who had moved back there. She ended up passing away and we ended up celebrating her life.

We already know jollof rice is your favourite food, so we will not even ask that. But what is your second favourite Nigerian food and who makes the best jollof in your family?

Yes, I do love jollof rice. My second favourite Nigerian food would probably be ogbono soup. My mum probably makes the best jollof in my family, although I will give it to my cousin. Most recently, I’ve had her Jollof and it’s pretty good as well.

Take us back to the very beginning. How did football find you, and what role did your brother Jide play in all of it?

Yeah, so football has been a part of my life pretty much since the beginning. My dad has always been a big football fan. He supported Barcelona. He just loved football in general, so he loved watching it. He included us in that as well. My brother played a huge role, I think, because he was older than me. I always strive to be as good as he was. I always strive to be able to compete with him. That helped me a lot because I would train with him growing up and I would train with him and his teams. I definitely gained a lot from that.

You studied computer science and business at USC while playing at the highest level. How did you actually manage that?

Studying computer science and business at USC was definitely not easy, but it was something that I was willing to challenge myself to be able to do. I’ve always been someone that cares about school. It’s been ingrained in me. Having Nigerian parents, I’ve always had to put my studies before anything else, even before football. So it was very important for me to pick a major that I felt like I would enjoy, but that I also felt like would challenge me and also be useful in the future. I think just like the tools that I learned in high school from discipline helped me to be able to be successful while studying that while also playing for USC and Canada.

Simi Awujo in a black graduation cap and gown, holding her University of Southern California (USC) diploma cover, smiling against a backdrop of red and yellow USC commencement banners as she celebrates her dual degree in Computer Science and Business Administration. Photo Credit: Simi Awujo/Instagram

You have called yourself a nerd and said you genuinely love coding. What are you building or what do you plan to build one day when football eventually gives you more time?

Yes, I do love coding, but I have taken a bit of a break for the past few months since I graduated. Hopefully in the future, I’ll be able to build something that integrates the things that I love. So football and coding all together and when that time comes, I’ll let you know.

You signed for Manchester United in August 2024. As a child you visited Old Trafford and attended a Manchester United Soccer School. What did it feel like the first time you walked into that stadium as a player?

Visiting Manchester United as a kid and going to Old Trafford and doing the soccer school was never something that I thought would come full circle, but here we are. I think the first time that I was at Old Trafford and I was going to step into the game, I was super nervous. I remember saying to my teammate that I was feeling so nervous because this was such a full circle moment for me, but it was an amazing feeling to go back there before the game and to get the tour as a player, a newly signed player, but then to be able to make my debut, professional debut and debut for the club at Old Trafford was such a surreal experience.

You were at the Paris Olympics. What was the single most unforgettable moment of that entire experience for you?

Yes, the Paris Olympics was a big step I feel like in my career and the most unforgettable moment would probably be when we made it out of the group stage. I’m sure people know what our team had to deal with during the Olympics and the way that that team that we persevered was something that I will never forget.

Official studio portrait of Simi Awujo, Manchester United Women’s midfielder. She is smiling, with her hair in neat braids, wearing the 2025/26 red home kit featuring the Snapdragon sponsor logo. Photo Credit: Simi Awujo/Instagram

We cannot interview a Nigerian without asking about music. What are you listening to right now and is there an Afrobeats song that has been on repeat lately?

Yes, I do love Afrobeats music. Right now, I feel like I’m listening to a lot of Fola, but I do really love the song “Adunni” by Rybeena and Joeboy. I also love “Duro” by Kodee and “Peace” by Mohbad.

Last one. If the little girl who first kicked a ball with her brother Jide could see you now, what do you think she would say?

I think the little girl that first kicked a ball with my brother would just tell me to keep going. I think my journey as a football player has had a lot of ups and downs and I wouldn’t trade the journey for anything, but I think that the young little me would just say to keep going, to keep pushing and to continue to find the love for the sport that made me continue to do the thing that made me fall in love with the sport to begin with.