This Calvin Bassey biography covers his age, stats, net worth 2025, salary per week, religion, parents, father, brother, wife, state of origin, and his transfer history. Let’s now see how Calvin Bassey has grown into one of the most talented Nigerian defenders currently playing football in Europe.
Calvin Bassey Biography
Becoming a top-flight defender wasn’t an easy one for Calvin Chinedu Ughelumba, who took his first breath in Aosta, Italy. His parents had gone there in search of work. Those early years in Italy were short; they were always moving, always heading somewhere else. Before long, the family was packing again, this time for England.
Newham wasn’t a bit like Aosta, nothing at all like it. Bassey didn’t see football as a pastime; for him, it was a lifeline. He grew up in a place where games happened anywhere a ball landed, where you got pushed aside if you didn’t fight for a place.
He grew tall early. By the time he was in his teens, coaches were already pointing out the balance in his stride. Italy had given him a birthplace; Newham gave him steel. Nigeria gave him identity. England, of course, gave Calvin the soccer stage.
Youth Career
Before clubs discovered Calvin, his first real experience with the ball came through futsal. The CM Futsal Academy is where his humble start came, way before the name Calvin even registered. The system of play there is straightforward: the ball moves quicker than you do, so learn to think even faster. Close control, quick recovery —those were the skills that we now see in him as a defender.
At fifteen, he walked into Leicester City on a trial. You wouldn’t pick him out in that moment as the future of a back line. But he played so well that it was hard for him to ignore. Leicester’s scouts saw a defender who could tackle like someone twice his age. They signed him.
Bassey climbed each rung. Under-18s. Under-23s. EFL Trophy nights, looking to make a point. He didn’t get first-team minutes for Leicester, but he did get something else: belief that he could play at the senior level somewhere else.
Senior Career
Rangers (2020–2022)
When Rangers came calling on him, it felt like he was going into the unknown. He signed a pre-contract in June 2020, with the world still unsure about everything from travel to football fixtures. When July came, he walked into Ibrox like someone who knew this was his moment to step out of the shadows.
His debut came fast on August 9th 2020. It was against St Mirren. He stepped onto the pitch with the scoreline already in favour of Rangers. His introduction was a chance to feel the weight of the shirt. That first touch, a simple pass into the midfield, and that was it!
His early months had a bit of everything. Then came the kind of match players don’t ever forget—a clinical 4–0 win over Falkirk. It was in that game that he scored his first senior goal. Defenders don’t wander into scoring positions often, but when they do, and score a goal, they always feel like they’ve scored two.
By the 2021–22 season, he wasn’t just part of the squad; he was now one of the backbones of the club. Rangers’ campaign within the Europa League that year wasn’t exactly easy that Bassey grew taller, but not physically, I meant in terms of certainty.
In the final against Eintracht Frankfurt, he was immense. Penalties decided the match, but his name stayed on lips long after the trophy went elsewhere. The Scottish Premiership title and the Scottish Cup followed, proof that his time in Glasgow was more than a stepping stone.
Ajax (2022–2023)
When Ajax paid around £20 million for him, they shattered Rangers’ transfer record. This kind of experience felt very validating for Calvin when a club of that caliber recognizes the worth of a player of his kind.
Amsterdam greeted his arrival with cool expectation. Fans of Ajax watch their defenders closely—they must play, not just defend. His debut came in the Johan Cruyff Shield. Coming on as a substitute, he was sent off fifteen minutes later. A red card on debut doesn’t speak well of a player, but it did challenge him, though.
Instead of shrinking, he responded by fighting for consistency. Twenty-five league appearances, a goal, European nights full of intensity, and a KNVB Cup final run. Ajax sharpened his skills and comfort on the ball. But something else called: a return to England, this time as a Premier League defender.
Fulham (2023–Present)
Fulham signed him on 28 July 2023. Four-year deal. A team searching for stability at the back and a boost up front. Ajax received €21 million. Obviously, Bassey was now a player you can tag as a “premium defender”.
He settled quickly into life in London. And since he grew up in Newham, Craven Cottage wasn’t far from home for him. We all know the Premier League is merciless. Every striker is hungry, every winger fast, and I need not tell you about their fans. Yet Bassey adapted and sometimes learning the hard way.
Then came 24 February 2024. Manchester United away match. Fulham had fought all game, and when a loose ball landed at his feet after a corner, he didn’t hesitate. One clean strike left Old Trafford stunned. The defender’s first goal with Fulham would be remembered throughout the season. Fulham went on to win 2–1. It was his twentieth appearance and his most symbolic.
He ended the season with 29 league appearances and gave Fulham’s back line a presence that grew more assured by the week. By late 2025, he had already crossed 80 appearances for the club, with more to come, of course.
International Career (Nigeria)
International football tests players’ identity more than their ability. Born in Italy, raised in England, rooted in Nigeria—Bassey could have chosen any of the three. But in 2021, when Nigeria called for the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers, he didn’t look twice.
He debuted on 25 March 2022 in a tense 0–0 draw with Ghana. Nigeria didn’t make it to that World Cup, but the Super Eagles gained a defender that so far has not been regretted.
Calvin played in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations competition, where the Nigerian national team played in the final match. The silver medal they eventually clinched wasn’t what they wanted, but what can they do? They had to manage it like that.
His first international goal came on 9 September 2025 in Bloemfontein, against South Africa, in a World Cup qualifier. A defender scoring always surprises crowds, but for Nigeria that night, it was what was needed.
Thirty-five appearances by late 2025. One goal. Many battles. Bassey is sure growing in the national team.
Career Statistics
By 2025, his numbers are progressive. Nearly 200 club appearances, five goals across Leicester, Rangers, Ajax, and Fulham. He also has thirty-five caps for the Super Eagles and counting. Even the blind can see that his stats show that his career was built step by step and not through shortcuts.
Honours
His list of honours looks like someone who has lived several football lives already:
With Rangers:
- Scottish Premiership
- Scottish Cup
- Europa League runner-up
For Ajax:
- KNVB Cup runner-up
With Nigeria:
- AFCON runner-up
Individual:
- Europa League Team of the Season
National Honour:
- Member of the Order of the Niger
For a defender still in his twenties, it is my thinking that all these international recognitions and national honours may be feeling too weighty for him.
Calvin Bassey Profile
- Full name: Calvin Chinedu Bassey
- Birth name: Calvin Chinedu Ughelumba
- Born: 31 December 1999, Aosta, Italy
- Height: 1.85 m
- Positions: Left-back, centre-back
- Current club: Fulham (shirt number 3)
Family: Father, Mother & Brothers
Calvin Bassey’s father, Kingsley, is a native of Umunnamehi in Ihiala, Anambra State, while his mother, Ebere, comes from Oron in Akwa Ibom State. That’s what makes him a Nigerian-Italian national, but of Igbo descent.
Bassey grew up with three brothers: Matthew (who goes by the stage name Y.CB, a famous British drill rapper), Elvis, and Michael.
After his father left when Calvin was just six years old, his mother brought them up alone. She made sacrifices for her children so they would get a chance to prosper back in England.
As a token of respect for his mum, Calvin changed his name to his mother’s surname, Bassey, and proudly wears it on his jersey.
What is Calvin Bassey’s Religion?
Calvin Bassey, in an interview, attributed much of his success to his Christian faith because, according to him, his religion is very important to him. He said, “I’m very religious… my faith is one of the strongest things I have.” Whenever things are not going well for him, he claims that the first place he turns is to the church through prayer, saying, “When things aren’t going well, I look up or say a little prayer.” Bassey believes his faith has helped him go from that young footballer in England to where he is today.
Wife/Girlfriend
Although Calvin Bassey’s current relationship status is unknown, he was previously linked to personal trainer Molly Godfrey during his time at Rangers, according to The Sun.
Molly, who also played international field hockey for Scotland, described Bassey as “not your typical footballer” – shy, funny, and down-to-earth. The two of them connected after he slid into her DMs on Instagram, enjoying light-hearted moments together despite his poor singing and dancing.
They ended their relationship without drama. She pursued a role in the British reality television series Geordie Shore, broadcast on MTV, while he focused on football.
Net Worth, Salary & Market Value
Calvin Bassey gets a salary of £45,000 every week during the 2025-2026 season. Additional bonuses raise the weekly take to £56,250. The annual salary for Calvin Bassey is £ 2.34 million. Additional bonuses raise that to £585,000 every year. His annual gross wages is £2,925,000. With two years remaining on his contract, he has £4,680,000 in gross salary still to be paid.
His estimated net worth is £ 10.3 million.
Basseys’ market value keeps appreciating. At Rangers, his worth changed from €150k in July 2020 to €500k in December 2020, then to €400k in June 2021, and to €1 million in December 2021. At Ajax, his worth appreciated from €10m in June 2022 to €19m in September, then to €18m in November, and finally to €14m in June 2023. After moving to Fulham, his worth jumped to €17m in December 2023 and remained at €16m until the end of 2024, then increased to €24m in March 2025 and finally to €26m on June 1, 2025.
Houses and Cars
Calvin isn’t the kind of person who puts his personal life up on social media for all to see. He doesn’t like sharing pictures of his cars and house online. As a result, there are currently no public records of the houses and cars that Calvin owns.
