Nigeria’s Super Falcons will face Cameroon not long time rivals Ghana in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations after a dramatic conclusion to the group stage saw CAF’s competition regulations and pre-determined knockout bracket come into play.
The nine-time African champions sealed their place in the last eight with an emphatic 6-2 victory over Egypt in their final Group C match. However, that result only secured second place after Malawi topped one of the most competitive groups in WAFCON history.
With Nigeria, Malawi and Zambia all finishing on six points, CAF applied the head-to-head rule rather than overall goal difference to separate the three teams.
Only the matches played among the tied teams were considered. Malawi emerged with the best head-to-head record to finish first, Nigeria placed second, while Zambia became the first team in WAFCON history to collect six points and still fail to reach the knockout stage.
Why Nigeria drew Cameroon
The answer lies in CAF’s fixed knockout bracket. unlike some tournaments where quarter final pairings depend on the best performing runners up, WAFCON follows a predetermined bracket before the competition begins.
Under that format:
- Group C winners play Group B runners-up.
- Group C runners-up play Group D winners.
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Since Nigeria finished second in Group C, they were automatically paired with the winners of Group D.
That team is Cameroon. the Indomitable Lionesses secured top spot in Group D after victories over Mali and Ghana, ensuring they finished above the rest of the group before the knockout stage.
Why not Ghana?
Although Ghana remained in contention for a place in the quarterfinals, the Black Queens could only qualify as Group D runners up after losing the decisive head-to-head encounter against Cameroon.
Because Nigeria had already been locked into the Group C runners-up position, a meeting with Ghana in the quarterfinals was never possible.
Instead, Ghana if they progressed would move into a different side of the knockout bracket.
Nigeria’s route to the last eight
The Super Falcons opened with a surprise 3-2 defeat to tournament debutants Malawi despite late goals from Rasheedat Ajibade and Uchenna Kanu.
They recovered brilliantly in their second outing, defeating Zambia 1-0 despite playing more than half the match with 10 players after Blessing Demehin’s first half red card. Asisat Oshoala’s early strike proved decisive.
With qualification still hanging in the balance, Nigeria produced their best display of the tournament against Egypt.
Oshoala opened the scoring from the penalty spot before Gift Monday doubled the lead before the interval. Uchenna Kanu, Christy Ucheibe, Rasheedat Ajibade and Joy Omewa completed a commanding 6-2 victory that secured Nigeria’s place in the knockout rounds.
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Nigeria and Cameroon will meet in the WAFCON quarterfinals on Sunday, August 9, with a place in the semi finals at stake.
