Ngozi Eucharia Uche (born 18 June 1973 in

Mbaise Mbaise is a region in Imo State in southeastern Nigeria. In the heart of Igboland, the region includes several towns and cities. It is a group of indigenous clans, connected by intermarriage. With a population density of over 1,000 people per squ ...

, Imo State,

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

) is a former football player and a former head coach of the

Nigeria women's national football team The Nigeria national women's football team, nicknamed the Super Falcons, represents Nigeria in international women's football and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Federation. The team is by far Africa's most successful international wome ...

. Uche grew up in

Owerri Owerri ( , ) is the capital city of Imo State in Nigeria, set in the heart of Igboland. It is also the state's largest city, followed by Orlu, Okigwe and Ohaji/Egbema. Owerri consists of three Local Government Areas including Owerri Municipal, ...

Early life

The first of five children, she was brought up in a middle class environment. She attended the Egbu Girls Secondary School Owerri before heading to

Delta State University Delta State University (DSU) is a public university in Cleveland, Mississippi, a city in the Mississippi Delta. History The school was established in 1924 by the State of Mississippi, using the facilities of the former Bolivar County Agricult ...

. While in secondary school, Uche began playing soccer. She later played for the national team Super Falcons, and became their first female coach. In 2010, she became the first woman coach to win an

African Women's Championship The Women's Africa Cup of Nations, also called the TotalEnergies Women's Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons and abbreviated to WAFCON, is an international women's football competition held every two years and sanctioned by the Confe ...

title. She was sacked in October 2011 after Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Controversy

Uche was cautioned by FIFA for remarks she made during the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, in which she called

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to pe ...

a "dirty issue" and "spiritually wrong".

Honours

; Nigeria Coach *

Winner (1): 2010

References

External links

Official Website of the Nigeria Football Federation
at the FIFA website.
Nigeria
at CAF Online 1973 births Living people Sportspeople from Imo State Nigeria women's international footballers 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup managers Female association football managers 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup players 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup players Nigerian women's footballers Nigeria women's national football team managers Women's association football forwards People from Mbaise Nigerian football managers Igbo people {{Nigeria-women-footy-bio-stub