# Ben Cabango
**Ben Cabango** (Benjamin George Cabango, born 2000 in Cardiff) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a center-back for Swansea City of the [EFL Championship](https://www.edgepedia.org/efl-championship) and the Wales national team. He joined Swansea's academy at the age of 14, captained the club at every youth level, and became the senior side's captain in January 2025.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) • [2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/ckgrzgyxl5jo)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name / born | Benjamin George Cabango, 2000, Cardiff, Wales[3](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html) |
| Position / height | Centre-back; listed at 1.88 m by National Football Teams and 186 cm by Field Insider[3](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html) • [4](https://fieldinsider.com/scout-report/benjamin-george-cabango-104041) |
| Club | Swansea City, joined at age 14; contract to summer 2028[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) • [5](https://www.swanseacity.com/news/ben-cabango-commits-future-swansea-city-new-contract-until-2028) |
| Senior debut | Carabao Cup win over Northampton Town, August 2019[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) |
| Wales career | First cap against Finland, September 2020; 17 FIFA matches and 0 goals per National Football Teams, 19 games per Opta[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) • [3](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html) • [6](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango/national) |
| Major tournaments | Wales' Euro 2020 squad (unused) and 2022 World Cup squad in Qatar[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) |
| Captaincy | Swansea City captain since January 2025, succeeding Matt Grimes[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/ckgrzgyxl5jo) |
## Youth career and loan to TNS
Cabango came through Swansea City's academy after joining at 14, and captained the Swans at every youth level he played.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) In the first half of the 2018-19 season he went on loan to The New Saints (TNS) of the JD Cymru Premier, making 25 appearances and scoring in a Champions League qualifying round against Shkendija of Macedonia while on loan from Swansea City.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) • [5](https://www.swanseacity.com/news/ben-cabango-commits-future-swansea-city-new-contract-until-2028) • [10](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44851728) He returned to play 12 times for Swansea's development side in the second half of the campaign, scoring twice.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180)
## Swansea City first team
**Breakthrough.** Cabango made his first-team debut in the Carabao Cup victory over Northampton Town in August 2019 and made a further 25 appearances that season, scoring his first senior goal in the July win at [Birmingham](https://www.edgepedia.org/birmingham).[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) In 2020-21 he made 35 appearances in all competitions and scored four times as Swansea reached the Championship play-offs, and he signed a contract in March 2021 running to the summer of 2025.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180)
**Milestones.** He was a first-team regular in 2021-22 with 40 appearances, and the 3-3 draw with [AFC Bournemouth](https://www.edgepedia.org/afc-bournemouth) on 26 April 2022 marked his 100th outing in Swans colors; that season he scored against Reading in the Carabao Cup and against Cardiff City.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) After returning from an ankle injury for the start of 2022-23, he made 46 appearances in all competitions and scored a 99th-minute winner to seal a 3-2 south Wales derby win at Cardiff.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) His 200th Swansea appearance came in a 4-3 defeat to Leeds in November 2024.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180)
**Contract and captaincy.** On 24 December 2024, with his previous deal due to expire at the end of the season, Cabango signed a new contract committing him to Swansea until the summer of 2028; at that point he had made 206 appearances for the club.[5](https://www.swanseacity.com/news/ben-cabango-commits-future-swansea-city-new-contract-until-2028) On 30 January 2025, head coach Luke Williams confirmed Cabango would replace the departing Matt Grimes as captain, calling the decision "pretty easy" and describing the defender as a "warrior" who had captained the club at every level.[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/ckgrzgyxl5jo)
**Recent seasons.** In 2024-25 he made 45 league appearances and scored twice as Swansea finished 11th in the Championship; he repeated the appearance count in 2025-26 with one goal, again in an 11th-place side.[3](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html) • [7](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango) A 2025-26 season assessment by Field Insider ranked him in the top 11 percent of the Championship's 47 center-backs, on 12 clean sheets and 3.46 defensive actions (tackles, blocks, and interceptions) per 90 minutes, with availability of 97.5 percent of available minutes as his standout strength.[4](https://fieldinsider.com/scout-report/benjamin-george-cabango-104041)
## International career
Cabango won his first senior cap for Wales against Finland in September 2020.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180) His form in 2020-21 earned selection for Wales' Euro 2020 squad, though he did not feature as [Rob Page](https://www.edgepedia.org/rob-page)'s side reached the knockout stages.[1](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180)
His cap count has grown slowly for a defender who is regularly called up: National Football Teams records 17 FIFA matches with no goals, including 2 in 2022, 1 in 2021, 4 in 2024, and 2 in 2025, while Opta lists 19 Wales games in his career with three appearances (two starts) in 2025.[3](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html) • [6](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango/national) In 2026 he featured in four of Wales' eight matches that year, all starts, and last played for Wales on 4 October against Denmark in a [UEFA Nations League](https://www.edgepedia.org/uefa-nations-league) match, a 1-0 defeat in which he played the full 90 minutes.[6](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango/national)
## Playing style
Swansea and Wales have used Cabango as a ball-playing center-back. ScoutingStats assigns him a "Ball-Playing CB" role, leading on short passing, ball retention, and tackling, with long passing and aerial ability rated 16 on a 1-20 scale; his 2026-27 Championship passing accuracy of 87.3 percent ranks higher than 71 percent of Championship defenders, and his 71.57 passes per 90 higher than 96 percent.[8](https://scoutingstats.ai/player/ben-cabango--7687676/) • [9](https://tactix.football/player/b-cabango) Head coach Luke Williams highlighted his willingness to "put his body on the line" and his motivational leadership.[2](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/ckgrzgyxl5jo)
## References
1. [B. Cabango, Swansea City official player page](https://www.swanseacity.com/player/180)
2. [Swans 'move on' as Cabango replaces Grimes as captain, BBC Sport Wales, 30 January 2025](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/ckgrzgyxl5jo)
3. [Ben Cabango, National Football Teams](https://www.national-football-teams.com/player/79208/Ben_Cabango.html)
4. [Benjamin Cabango, Stats, Rating & Scouting Report, Field Insider](https://fieldinsider.com/scout-report/benjamin-george-cabango-104041)
5. [Ben Cabango commits future to Swansea City with new contract until 2028, Swansea City AFC, 24 December 2024](https://www.swanseacity.com/news/ben-cabango-commits-future-swansea-city-new-contract-until-2028)
6. [Ben Cabango International Career, Opta Analyst](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango/national)
7. [Ben Cabango, Opta Analyst](https://theanalyst.com/players/5199/ben-cabango)
8. [Ben Cabango, ScoutingStats](https://scoutingstats.ai/player/ben-cabango--7687676/)
9. [Benjamin Cabango stats 2026/27, TACTIX](https://tactix.football/player/b-cabango)
10. [bbc.co.uk](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/44851728)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football people and teams › People › Men's footballers of the British Isles (modern era) › Welsh footballers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license