Super Falcons In The Same Group With Zambia In WAFCON 2026
Nigerian Super Falcons, the defending champions has been drawn in the same group with fierce rivals Zambia in the group draw for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).
The Super Falcons demolished Zambia 5-0 on the way to humbling Morocco 3-2 in the final in Rabat to claim a record-extending 10th WAFCON title in July last year.
Apart from Zambia, Nigeria will also tackle Egypt and debutants Malawi in Group C of the competition.
Morocco, which has hosted the last two editions of WAFCON, will host a third successive edition and will play North African rivals Algeria in Group A, which also has Senegal and Kenya.
South Africa, winners of the 2022 WAFCON edition, will face Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, and Tanzania in Group C, while Ghana will lock horns with Cameroon, Mali, and debutants Cape Verde in Group D.
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In this year’s edition of WAFCON, the four semi-finalists at the tournament will qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, with the losing quarter-finalists playing off for two spots at an inter-confederation qualifier.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) decided to expand WAFCON from 12 to 16 teams midway through qualification, paving the way for Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mali, and Egypt to progress to the finals based on their world ranking, even though they lost their respective second-round qualification ties.
The 2026 WAFCON comes just eight months after the 2024 tournament, which was delayed because of scheduling issues that included the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The competition will be held from Tuesday, 17 March to Friday, 3 April 2026. This WAFCON edition will be four days shorter than the 2024 edition, which featured six fewer games because of the expansion.
The matches will be played across three Moroccan cities, Rabat, Casablanca, and Fes. Matches in Rabat will be hosted in two different stadiums; hence, matches will be played in four stadiums across the three hosting cities.
CAF president Patrice Motsepe hinted at plans to increase both the prize money for WAFCON and the salaries of female players on the continent, just before the draw.
Nigeria received $1m for lifting the trophy last July, while the winners of the men’s 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday will go home with $10m.
WAFCON 2026 Group Draw
Group A: Morocco (Hosts), Algeria, Senegal, Kenya.
Group B: South Africa, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Tanzania.
Group C: Nigeria (Defending Champions), Zambia, Egypt, Malawi.
Group D: Ghana, Cameroon, Mali, Cape Verde.
Group A matches will be played at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Group B at the Al Medina Stadium (formerly Stade El Barid) in Rabat, Group C at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca, and Group D at the Complexe Sportive de Fes.
