By Teddy Nwanunobi
The Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) defending champions, Nigeria’s Super Falcons, have arrived at their camp in Casablanca, Morocco, ahead of their title defence in the WAFCON 2026.
Daily NewsCraft reports that the Super Falcons are gunning for a record-extending 11th WAFCON title , as well as pick a ticket for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) in Brazil.
Speaking ahead of the tournament, which will run from Sunday, July 26 to August 16, Super Falcons’ goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie, said that the team is focused on retaining their title.
“We will take it one match at a time because we cannot afford to stumble at any stage as a result of over-confidence. We will be focused squarely on the double targets of FIFA World Cup ticket and retaining the trophy.
“It is interesting to have more teams at the finals (16 now, up from 12). That will make the tournament more competitive, but we are calm and focused regardless of the number of teams in the finals.
“I don’t share the belief that any group is tougher than the others. Honestly, right now in Africa, there are no longer minnows. There will be a lot of surprises in this tournament as the so-called small teams will be keen to prove they are no push-overs, so all teams deserve respect and must be taken seriously.
“For us, we know what we are going for: the Cup and the World Cup ticket. It will not be easy but we are the Super Falcons of Nigeria!” Nnadozie said.
Drawn in Group C alongside Egypt, Zambia, and debutants Malawi, the Super Falcons will kickoff their campaign against Malawi on July 28 (21:00, Al Medina Stadium, Rabat). They will face Zambia on August 1 (21:00, Al Medina Stadium, Rabat), and conclude their group encounters against Egypt on August 5 (21:00, Rabat Olympic Stadium).
Daily NewsCraft reports that the WAFCON 2026 was originally rescheduled to start from March 17 to April 3, 2026. The new change was announced on March 5, 2026, just days before the tournament was set to begin.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals. Winners of the quarter-finals (final four teams) will secure direct qualification to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil, while the losing teams will compete in play-in matches to determine the final two African spots via the inter-confederation play-offs.