The 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup has reached an exciting moment as the round of 16 begins on October 28 and 29.
Four African teams, hosts Morocco, Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya, have successfully made it out of their groups to keep their World Cup dreams alive.
Unfortunately, Zambia missed out on the knockout stage after losing all three of their matches in Group D.
Nigeria’s Flamingos showed strong form in Group B, winning two of their three matches to qualify easily. In Group C, Ghana’s Black Maidens earned their spot with one win and one draw.
Meanwhile, Morocco (Group A) and Kenya (Group E) both finished with three points after recording one win and two losses.
The results were enough for both teams to advance as two of the best third-placed teams.
Now, tough challenges lie ahead for all four African nations:
Morocco will take on defending champions North Korea.
Ghana will play against debutants Argentina.
Nigeria will face 2018 runners-up Mexico.
Kenya will battle 2014 champions Japan.
For Kenya’s Junior Starlets, making the final 16 is a major milestone.
After tough losses against China and the USA, Kenya bounced back with a dominant 4-0 victory over Samoa to seal their spot in the next round.
Their next opponent, Japan, won all three group matches, matching Spain and China with a perfect record. This match will mark the very first meeting between Kenya and Japan.
Kenya’s head coach, Mildred Cheche, shared her pride after her team’s decisive victory:
“I think the girls did well,” coach Cheche beamed.
“Qualifying for the first time to the knockout stage is history, and we have a lot to do, but at this moment, we enjoy the moment of qualifying for the next round. We looked to score early, and we got chances, but we were unlucky at times. But I am glad the four goals enabled us to go through. We are now going to the round of 16. We are playing Japan; it is not an easy game, so we just do our best and see where that takes us.”
No team from Africa has ever won the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
The best performances by African nations so far belong to Ghana in 2012 and Nigeria in 2022, when both teams achieved third-place finishes.
The remaining four African teams will now fight hard to write a new history on the global stage.
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