Cameroon claimed their inaugural Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) title by defeating tournament debutants Malawi 3-0 in the final held in Rabat. The victory marks a significant achievement for the Indomitable Lionesses, who had previously lost three Wafcon finals.
The match saw Marie Ngah Manga open the scoring in the 20th minute with a close-range header. Naomi Eto extended Cameroon‘s lead with a volley on the half-hour mark. Ngah Manga then scored her second goal, and fifth of the tournament, in the third minute of first-half added time, following an assist from Eto.
Match Highlights and Key Performances
Cameroon‘s first goal came after Malawi goalkeeper Mercy Sikelo misjudged a cross from Eto, leading to Grace Mendoua‘s header being tipped onto the bar, allowing Ngah Manga to convert the rebound. The second goal resulted from Malawi failing to clear a corner, with Eto pivoting to send her shot into the bottom right corner.
The third goal involved Sikelo coming off her line to intercept Genevieve Ngo Mbeleck‘s through ball, but Eto reached it first, crossed from the byline, and set up Ngah Manga for a header into an empty net. Ngah Manga later had an opportunity to complete a hat-trick in the second half but fired wide.
Malawi, ranked 153rd in the world, had their best chance just after the hour mark when Cameroon keeper Michaely Bihina saved a low effort from Tabitha Chawinga, whose sister Temwa Chawinga then fired the rebound wide. Bihina, a 22-year-old Benfica goalkeeper, had been a key performer for Cameroon in earlier matches, making nine saves against Nigeria in the quarter-finals and stopping an extra-time penalty and three spot-kicks against Morocco in the semi-finals.
Cameroon‘s coach, Valentine Nguele, who took charge in June, led the team to a 1-0 victory over Nigeria in the quarter-finals and a penalty shootout win against host nation Morocco in the semi-finals. The team’s success is particularly notable as they missed the 2024 edition of Wafcon and initially failed to qualify for the 2026 finals, losing 3-1 on aggregate to Algeria. However, they advanced based on their world ranking after the Confederation of African Football (Caf) expanded the tournament from 12 to 16 teams.
Tournament Significance and Global Reach
The final was attended by Fifa president Gianni Infantino and Caf counterpart Patrice Motsepe, who presented the trophy. Cameroon received $2m in prize money, becoming the fourth side to win the title after Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, and South Africa.
Both Cameroon and Malawi, along with fellow Wafcon semi-finalists Algeria and Morocco, will participate in the 2027 Women’s Fifa World Cup in Brazil. Malawi and Algeria will be making their World Cup debuts. Cameroon had previously played in the 2015 and 2019 editions, while Morocco will make its second appearance after reaching the round of 16 in 2023.
The Wafcon 2026 final marked a historic moment for African women’s football, with the match broadcast live for the first time in territories such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, and several South American countries. Over 85 countries watched the final live, with extensive coverage across Africa, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, Asia-Pacific, Oceania, and North America.
Broadcasters included CANAL+ and SuperSport across Pan-Africa, along with national and regional channels such as Canal 2, CRTV, and MSI in Cameroon, and MBC in Malawi. In Europe, Channel 4 broadcast the final free-to-air in the United Kingdom, while Ziggo covered the Netherlands and DAZN DACH covered Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein. beIN Sports provided coverage across the Middle East and North Africa, France, Asia-Pacific, Oceania, and North America, highlighting the growing international interest in African women’s football.
Ngah Manga expressed her happiness, stating, “We have been working so hard over all these years to get here. To finally be champions we are very proud.”
Source: bbc.com
