*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 June 2024
Wasila Diwura-Soale (born 1 September 1996) is a Ghanaian footballer who plays as a midfielder for USL Super League club Tampa Bay Sun, and for the Ghana women's national team.[3][4] Diwura-Soale played for Ghana at U-17 level in 2012 and was part of the Black Maidens squad that placed third at the 2012 World Cup in Azerbaijan. She also featured for the Ghana U-20 team, the Black Princesses, at the 2014 and 2016 World Cups in Canada and Papua New Guinea respectively.[5]
In 2017, Diwura-Soale moved to the United States at the back of her performances with the Ghana U20 at the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. She joined Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas, for head coach Alicia Wilson. Wilson convinced Diwura-Soale to pursue a degree as part of her preparations into going professional after she had wanted to pursue a professional football career right away.[10] In her first season, she accumulated 36 points in the as she scored 12 goals including 4 match winning goals and made 12 assists in 17 games.[11]
The following season, she improved on her previous season by accumulating 52 points through 18 goals including 5 match winning goals and 16 assists in 19 games to help them reach the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).[12][13] Her most notable performance was on 5 September 2018 when she scored five goals and made three assists in a 11–0 victory over Northeast Texas.[14] In her two-year stint with the Bulldogs, she was a two-time, NJCAA First Team All-American,[15][16][13] making her only the third Navarro player in history to earn that honour.[14] In total she accumulated 88 points, scored 30 goals, nine game-winning goals and made 28 assists in 36 games in her two seasons at Navarro.[10][14] In May 2018, she made Navarro College spring President’s and Dean’s Lists for her academic achievement.[17]
Lamar Lady Cardinals, 2019
After two seasons with Navarro, she transferred to Lamar University where she joined the Lamar Lady Cardinals in 2019.[5] She had a good start at Lamar by starting in the first four matches and providing one assist however her season was curtailed after she picked up an injury that side lined her for the rest of the 2019 season.[10][14] During her recovery period she considered quitting football.[10]
LSU Tigers, 2020–2022
In May 2020, she transferred to Louisiana State University and joined the LSU Tigers team, becoming the first African football player to play for the Tigers.[10] She made an immediate impact on the team in her first season, playing 19 games whilst making 4 assists, the highest on the team.[18] In August 2021, she graduated from Louisiana State University with a bachelor's degree in humanities and social science.[13][19] Diwura-Soale graduated with a degree in interdisciplinary studies in August 2021.[20]
International career
Youth
Diwura-Soale made her youth debut for Ghana for the under-17s in 2012.[5] In October 2012, Diwura-Soale was part of the Ghana under-17 team who finished in third place by beating Germany in the third place match at the 2012 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Azerbaijan.[19] At the competition she played five out of the six games.[21]
