| Ben Cabango | |
| Full Name: | Benjamin George Cabango[1] |
| Birth Date: | 30 May 2000 |
| Birth Place: | Cardiff, Wales |
| Height: | 1.86m |
| Position: | Defender |
| Currentclub: | Swansea City |
| Clubnumber: | 5 |
| Youthclubs2: | Swansea City |
| Years1: | 2018– |
| Clubs1: | Swansea City |
| Caps1: | 168 |
| Goals1: | 9 |
| Years2: | 2018–2019 |
| Clubs2: | → The New Saints (loan) |
| Caps2: | 16 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2017 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2018–2019 |
| Nationalteam2: | Wales U19 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 10 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 1 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2019 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 5 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2020– |
| Nationalcaps4: | 9 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 0 |
| Club-Update: | 17:40, 17 August 2024 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 19:47, 9 June 2024 (UTC) |
Benjamin George Cabango (born 30 May 2000) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Swansea City and the Wales national team.
Cabango was born in Cardiff to an Angolan father and a Welsh mother. He has a younger brother named Theo who plays rugby union for Cardiff.[2] He attended Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Plasmawr, a Welsh language comprehensive school.[3] [4]
Cabango began his career as a youth player with local amateur side Maindy Corries, where his father Paolo was a coach, before joining the youth academy at Newport County,[5] where he played from under-13 to under-15 levels. He moved to the academy at Swansea City when he is 14,[6] where he captained the under-19 side to win the FAW Welsh Youth Cup in 2018 and helped the under-23 side reach the final of the Premier League Cup.[3] [7]
In June 2018, Cabango signed his first professional deal with Swansea City, then signed for reigning Welsh Premier League champions The New Saints on a six-month loan deal.[3] [8] He made his senior debut for the side in a 5–0 defeat to Macedonian side KF Shkëndija in the first leg of the first qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League.[9] In the return leg, Cabango scored his first senior goal as The New Saints won 4–0 but were eliminated on aggregate.[10]
On 13 August 2019, he made his professional debut for Swansea in a 3–1 victory over Northampton Town in the first round of the League Cup.[11] He made his league debut as a substitute against Huddersfield Town on 26 November 2019.[12] In March 2020, he signed a new deal with Swansea until 2023.[13]
Cabango made his senior Wales international debut as a second-half substitute during the team's UEFA Nations League League B match against Finland on 3 September 2020, which Wales won 1–0.[14] In May 2021 he was selected for the Wales squad for the delayed UEFA Euro 2020 tournament.[15] In November 2022 he was named in the Wales squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[16]
Ben Cabango is the elder brother of professional rugby union player Theo Cabango.[17]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Swansea City | 2018–19 | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Championship | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 1 | ||
| 2020–21 | Championship | 30 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 35 | 4 | ||
| 2021–22 | Championship | 37 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 39 | 2 | |||
| 2022–23 | Championship | 43 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 46 | 2 | |||
| 2023–24 | Championship | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 0 | |||
| Total | 166 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 182 | 9 | |||
| The New Saints (loan) | 2018–19[18] | Welsh Premier League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 25 | 1 | |
| Career total | 182 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 1 | 207 | 10 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | 2020 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 1 | 3 | ||
| 2022 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 9 | 3 | ||