Carlos Akapo MartÃÂnez (born 12 March 1993) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back. Born in Spain, he represents Equatorial Guinea at international level.
Akapo was born in Elche, Province of Alicante, to an Equatoguinean father and a Spanish mother. He played youth football for four clubs, including Hércules and Elche, and finished his development also in the Valencian Community at Huracán. He made his senior debut with the latter on 22 January 2012, in a 2âÂÂ1 home loss against Mallorca B.
On 11 July 2013, Akapo signed a two-year contract with Segunda División side Numancia. His first game as a professional took place on 25 August, as he started in a 4âÂÂ2 home win over Real Jaén.
On 6 August 2014, Akapo joined Valencia and was assigned to the reserves in the third tier. After two seasons of relative playing time, he returned to division two after agreeing to a three-year deal at Huesca on 14 June 2016.
Akapo was regularly used in the following campaigns, and contributed 20 appearances in 2017âÂÂ18 as the club achieved a first-ever promotion to La Liga. He made his debut in the competition on 25 September 2018, coming on as a substitute for Luisinho in a 3âÂÂ0 defeat at Atlético Madrid.
On 20 June 2019, after suffering immediate relegation, Akapo signed a three-year contract with Cádiz of the second division, as a free agent. He featured sparingly in his first season at the Estadio Ramón de Carranza, in a promotion as runners-up.
Akapo scored his first goal in the Spanish top tier â also his first as a senior â on 21 May 2021, his team's second in the 2âÂÂ2 away draw against Levante. On 5 August 2022, he joined Major League Soccer side San Jose Earthquakes on a one-and-a-half-year deal.
On 14 February 2025, Akapo moved to the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B with Amazonas.
Akapo received his first call from Equatorial Guinea in late August 2012, for a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Congo DR the following month. He did not leave the bench in the 4âÂÂ0 loss, making his debut on 5 June 2013 in a friendly with Togo.
Akapo's first major tournament was the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He played all the minutes but one in Cameroon to help his team reach the quarter-finals; in the round of 16 against Mali, he converted his attempt in the penalty shootout.
Akapo's younger brother, Javier, is also a defender and an international for Equatorial Guinea.