Official: William Troost Ekong Calls It A Day

The Super Eagles captain has called time on his illustrious career after a decade of committed service.

William Troost Ekong has announced his retirement from the Nigerian Super Eagles team following their failure to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The Netherlands born Nigerian international switched allegiance to the most populous black nation in 2015 after a phone call with late Stephen Keshi.

He went on to appear in five major tournaments in the green and white colours of Nigeria, winning three medals and an AFCON MVP.

In his years with the team, Ekong displayed exemplary leadership and performances and was adored by all of his teammates and the nation at large.

After making his debut against Chad in an AFCON qualifying game on June 15, the Haarlem born defender never looked back again until his retirement.

His eight goals for the Super Eagles will remain a bright story in his international journey with Nigeria that earned him a national honour.

Ekong released a video to announce his decision and followed that up by an open letter containing every word from the footage. He retires as the highest scoring defender in the history of the AFCON with five goals.

“TODAY, I AM ANNOUNCING MY RETIREMENT FROM INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL.”

“IN 2015 A PHONE CALL FROM THE LATE STEPHEN KESHI CHANGED MY LIFE. A MONTH LATER THE BIG BOSS GAVE ME MY DEBUT. HIS BELIEF IN ME IGNITED A DESIRE TO FOLLOW IN HIS FOOTSTEPS.

EVERY SINGLE TIME I HAVE PUT ON THAT ICONIC SHIRT TO WALK OUT ONTO THE PITCH, I HAVE THOUGHT BACK TO THAT MOMENT. GOING ON TO CAPTAIN THE SUPER EAGLES WAS BEYOND MY WILDEST DREAMS.”

“NIGERIA TOOK ME IN AND TRUSTED ME TO LEAD AND REPRESENT A NATION OF 230+ MILLION. FROM A BOY BORN AND RAISED IN THE NETHERLANDS TO THE OYIBO WALL AND EVENTUALLY SKIPPO IS A PRIVILEGE I WILL ALWAYS HOLD CLOSE TO MY HEART.”

“TO HAVE ACHIEVED 83 SENIOR CAPS, PLAYED IN FIVE MAJOR TOURNAMENTS, WON THREE MEDALS, AND BROKEN A FEW RECORDS — I HAVE LIVED MY DREAM.”

“A BRONZE MEDAL AT THE RIO 2016 OLYMPICS, FOLLOWED BY PLAYING AT THE 2018 WORLD CUP IN RUSSIA, AND THREE INCREDIBLE AFCON TOURNAMENTS WITH A BRONZE AND MOST RECENTLY SILVER MEDAL WILL REMAIN UNFORGETTABLE.”

“BEING ABLE TO LEAD NIGERIA THROUGH THE 2023 AFCON, SCORING IN THE FINAL AND BEING NAMED PLAYER OF THE TOURNAMENT WAS SOMETHING SPECIAL. TO THIS DAY I STILL WISH FOR A DIFFERENT ENDING. BECOMING THE HIGHEST-SCORING DEFENDER IN AFCON HISTORY IS AN HONOR I SHARE WITH EVERY TEAMMATE WHO WAS A PART OF THOSE MOMENTS. THAT TOURNAMENT TAUGHT ME WHAT IT TRULY MEANS TO BE NIGERIAN; THAT IN ADVERSITY, WE COME TOGETHER, WE HUSTLE, WE FIGHT THROUGH THE PAIN AND WE RISE.

I AM AT PEACE KNOWING THAT THROUGHOUT ALL THESE MILESTONES I GAVE EVERYTHING I HAD. NOT JUST FOR MYSELF BUT TO TRY TO INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION THE SAME WAY I WAS INSPIRED BY THE LEGENDS I LOOKED UP TO, AND HAD THE PLEASURE TO FIGHT SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH.

IT HAS BEEN FUN TO PLAY ALONGSIDE MY NIGERIAN TEAMMATES, BUILDING SOMETHING GREAT TOGETHER.”

“WATCHING THEM GROW INTO LEADERS, TIME HAS COME TO PASS ON THE RESPONSIBILITY, TO PASS ON THE OPPORTUNITY AND PASS ON THE CAPTAINCY. AS A CUSTODIAN OF AN ICONIC SHIRT, I’VE ALWAYS KNOWN IT WAS ONLY BORROWED. NOW IT’S THE TURN OF THE NEXT GENERATION TO CONTINUE TO WRITE THEIR OWN STORY.

BORN IN THE DIASPORA I AM SO PROUD TO BE PART OF A GROUP THAT FULLY SHOWED ITS POSSIBLE TO COME HOME TO PLAY AND REPRESENT OUR NATION.

NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE PEOPLE AROUND ME. TO EVERY COACH, MEMBER OF STAFF AND MOST IMPORTANTLY MY TEAMMATES PAST AND PRESENT WHO HAVE BEEN PART OF MY INTERNATIONAL JOURNEY, THANK YOU!”

“TO THE NIGERIAN FANS – THE HEARTBEAT OF NIGERIAN FOOTBALL. YOUR SUPPORT HAS CARRIED ME THROUGH EVERY HIGH AND EVERY CHALLENGE. I WILL STAND WITH YOU AS YOU STOOD WITH ME.”

“THIS ISN’T A FINAL GOODBYE. MY WORK WITHIN NIGERIAN COMMUNITIES CONTINUES, JUST AS MY LOVE AND PASSION FOR THIS TEAM WILL NEVER FADE.”

“THE LAST DECADE HAS BEEN FILLED WITH COMMITMENT, PRIDE, AND UNFORGETTABLE MEMORIES.

WEARING THE SUPER EAGLES SHIRT HAS BEEN MORE THAN PLAYING FOOTBALL. IT HAS BEEN A DUTY, A PRIVILEGE, AND AN HONOUR.”

“WILLIAM TROOST-EKONG (M.O.N).”

Despite the retirement from the national team, the veteran remains committed to his club-side Al Kholood FC in the Saudi Pro League.