Not every football fairytale begins with a scout pitch-side, some are launched by a single viral clip. For Stanley Godians, a 21-year-old Nigerian footballer currently plying his trade in Slovakia, a sub-minute video uploaded to Instagram became his golden ticket to professional football.
Stanleys journey began around 2021. Despite possessing the raw talent to stop traffic at his local roadside club, Haniksport in Abuja, opportunities for foreign exposure were non-existent. The dream of a European contract seemed remote.
Then came the first flicker of hope. During a routine training session, a visiting football promoter, finalising a trial in Kaduna, spotted the then 17-year-old. A quick invitation followed.
I had a good relationship with the stadium keeper, he recalls. One afternoon while training, a football promoter saw me. He was planning a trial in Kaduna and asked if I was ready to travel to Sweden or Denmark. I said yes immediately.
Stanley impressed at the Kaduna trial but visa problems killed the move. Frustrated, he turned to social media, an uncharted field for footballers then.
I was tired of attending several trials that led nowhere. So I decided to try something different, he said. Back then, football content creation wasnt a thing. No one was doing it. I just felt led to start posting videos online.
With a basic Tecno smartphone, Stanley began documenting his daily football life. He was driven by a simple, almost radical belief, a foreign scout would see him on Instagram and whisk him away. The first year was a grind, a period of trial and error with 12-minute-long, unguided content.
I didnt post for followers. I posted to be seen. I believed one day a white man would see me and take me abroad, he laughed.
But the platform soon became his unexpected training ground. The sheer visibility led to public acknowledgment, support from well-wishers who funded his journey with gifts and cash, and a crucial midnight DM from a Nigerian based in the US. This US-based contact, who would later become his manager, offered guidance and belief:
You are too good to be in Nigeria Stanley remembers their conversation with sheer admiration
I will do everything to see you leave. This connection proved to be the assist that changed everything.
Neymar Jrs Five: The Turning Point
Having refined his content into sharp, under-three-minute cuts, the decisive moment arrived in 2022, the Neymar Jrs Five tournament.
Encouraged by one of his burgeoning online community to apply, Stanley shot, edited, and posted his entry. He barely gave it a second thought until a message from Red Bull landed in his inbox. He had been personally pre-selected by Neymar.
I woke up one morning and my phone was frozen, he recounts. The news was everywhere. With the support of his now-manager, Stanley travelled to Lagos, where he was interviewed by SuperSport and presented as a participant from Africa
In Dubai for the challenge, Now equipped with a better gear phone, Stanley leveraged the momentum, posting exclusive behind-the-scenes content that saw his TikTok following explode, with his first challenge video netting over 4 million views and 500k followers.
The exposure was instant. Before the tournament even concluded, the Egyptian powerhouse Zamalek came calling, dispatching a scout to meet him in Qatar. Suddenly, a player who couldnt afford a square meal was sitting pitch-side with football royalty, Neymar Junior.
Stanley was courted by four different clubs. Though he passed on Zamaleks six-year offer, he managed to signed a one year deal with another first tier side in Egypt.
Having left Nigeria for the first time to pursue his goal of playing professional football, the Haniksport prodigy faced a unique challenge, balancing his professional commitment with his established routine of posting videos. Although his ultimate dream was still unattained, Stanley continued to share his training footage and drills across various platforms.
I was called into the office by the team manager who expressed concern that my video posts suggested a lack of commitment to the teams performance. They specifically pointed out that I had even posted videos after the team had lost a game and sometimes hosted live videos. He recalls
I explained that, like every player, I was deeply concerned about the teams performance, but I couldnt dwell in sorrow after a loss. Furthermore, posting videos was a personal stress reliever that I did during my off-time. My teammates had their own ways of relaxing during their breaks, so I questioned why my activity should be an issue. Following that discussion, I was never questioned about it again until I left the club.
Stanley recounts that after his time in Egypt, he received an offer to play in Spain.
He emphasizes that every s
