The race for tickets to the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations is heating up, with the final round of qualifiers set to take place in October. The Super Falcons of Nigeria, the reigning champions and 10-time winners, are slated to face the She-Cheetahs of Benin Republic. Meanwhile, the Indomitable Lionesses of Cameroon, two-time runners-up, have a formidable challenge ahead.
The Lionesses, who lost to Nigeria in the 2014 and 2016 finals, are up against Algeria’s Lady Fennecs, a rising power in women’s football. The Lady Fennecs proved their mettle in Morocco this past July, finishing second in their group behind Nigeria after defeating Botswana and securing draws with both Tunisia and Nigeria. They advanced to the quarter-finals, where they took Ghana’s Black Queens to a penalty shootout before being eliminated. The Indomitable Lionesses, on the other hand, failed to qualify for the 2025 finals and lost a friendly match 2-0 to Nigeria just weeks before the tournament.
For the Super Falcons, their two-legged tie against Benin Republic will see them travel for the first leg before hosting the return fixture. The She-Cheetahs earned their spot in the final round by defeating Sierra Leone 5-2 on aggregate, winning 2-1 in Togo and 3-1 in Monrovia, as both teams had to play their home matches on neutral ground.
In another key matchup, Senegal’s Lionesses, who reached the quarter-finals in Morocco before a penalty shootout loss to South Africa, face a tough challenge against Cote d’Ivoire.
The 11 winners of these final qualifying fixtures will join hosts Morocco at the 2026 WAFCON, scheduled for March. The four semi-finalists will earn a direct ticket to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Two additional African slots are also available through a play-off tournament, just as was the case for the 2023 tournament. The final competition in Brazil is set to feature 32 teams.
The news comes from the NFF Communications Department.
