After Failing To Qualify On The Pitch For WAFCON 2026, CAMEROON, IVORY COAST, MALI AND EGYPT Will However Participate In The Competition
Joe Dinga Pefok (Uncle Joe)
This Follows A Decision, By CAF, To Increase The Number Of Teams That Participate At The Women’s Africa Cup Of Nations (WAFCON), From 12 to 16, Starting From WAFCOM 2026 In Morocco.
Cameroon’s Senior Female Football Team, Used To Create Sensation, On The World Stage. But Things Have Degenerated Such That, The Team Has For Two Consecutive Tines Failed To Qualify On The Pitch, For WAFCON.
After failing to qualify for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, WAFCOM 2026, that will be hosted by Morocco, the senior women national football teams of Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Mali and Egypt, will luckily enough, still have the opportunity to participate in the female football festival in Morocco next year. This follows a decision by the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football, CAF, to increase the number of teams that will henceforth participate in WAFCON, starting from the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations to take place in Morocco next year, from 12 to 16 teams.
The above information is contained in a correspondence dated November 3, 2025, which CAF’s Director of Tournaments and Events, Samson Adamu, addressed to all associations or federations that are members of the Confederation.
Selection Based On FIFA Ranking
The senior official of CAF, explained in his correspondence, that considering the fact that the qualification phase for WAFCON 2026 is already over, CAF thus decided to use the current FIFA ranking to select 4 teams from the 11 teams that were eliminated at the qualification phase of WAFCON 2026, to join the 12 teams that qualified, so as to complete the list of 16 participants for WAFCON 2026, that will hold in Morocco. He furher explained that the criteria used for the selection of the four teams, was their current positions on the FIFA rankings.
The following four teams or countries were thus selected: 1) CAMEROON which is 66th in the FIFA ranking. 2) IVORY COAST which is No. 71 in the FIFA ranking. 3) MALI which is 79th. 4) EGYPT which is 95th. These four countries will thus join the 12 that qualified on the pitch at the qualification phase for WAFCON 2026, to participate in the women football festival next year in Morocco.
Cameroon Was Eliminated In The Final Phase Of Qualification By Algeria
Meanwhile, it would be recalled that the senior female national football team of Cameroon, was eliminated in the final phase of qualification for WAFCON 2026 by Algeria. The Lionesses led by Captain Aboudi Onguene Gabrielle, and Deputy Captain, Nchout Njoya Ajara, both fleet footed football players, embarrassing failed to qualify on the pitch for WAFCON 2026, in the final match that took place at home, precisely at the Japoma Stadium in Douala, on Tuesday, October 28, 2025. A few days earlier, the team captained by Nchout Njoya Ajara fell, in Algiers, Algerian to the home side, that beat the visiting Lioness by 2 – 1. Cameroon’s lone goal came through a penal in the last minutes of the game, which was transformed or booted in by Nchout Ajara.
Cameroonian sports analysts and fans, had all hoped that the Lionesses will turn the table in the return match a few days later, at home. For one thing, if Cameroon could have beaten the Algerian side just by 1 – 0, it would have qualified for WAFCON. But the shockwave came, when the visiting Algerian side instead opened score, in the return leg match in Douala. Cameroon tried hard, and drew level before half time. But then no goal came again throughout the second half, and so the 1 – 1 tie at the end of the match, was to the advantage of Algeria that won the away leg, and thus qualified for AFCON 2026.
A New Lost and Found Opportunity For Aboudi Onguene And Others
The failure of the Lionesses on that fateful Tuesday, October 28, 2025 in Douala –Cameroon, to qualify for WAFCON 2026, was the more painful to Cameroonian sports fans, because Cameroon was to be absent from WAFCON for an unprecedented second consecutive time, as the Lionesses failed to qualify for the last WAFCON. It was also like a disastrous end in the national team for Captain Aboudi Onguene Gabrielle, and a number of other team mates, who because of age will very unlikely, if not certainly, not be part of the national team again for WAFCON 2028. They are thus very fortunate that with the CAF decision, they will be able to play what will likely be their last WAFCON.
It should also be noted that participation in WAFCON 2026, will as well be an opportunity for the participating countries to have the possibility to qualify for the next female World Cup. To be precise, the 4 teams that will qualify for the semi –finals of WAFCON, will automatically qualify to represent Africa at the next Women’s World Cup.
Cameroon Football Is Sick
Meanwhile, the fact of the matter is that Cameroon football is sick, in fact very sick. Nothing is really moving well for the different categories of the national teams, as well as with Cameroonian clubs that quality for CAF competitions. The local championships are more of a disaster. Unfortunately, instead of football administrators trying to sit down, concert or brainstorm and look for appropriate solutions to salvage Cameroon football, it is all bla bla bla, and no concrete action. Football administrators, whose sole interest today appears to be money, and nothing but money, behave more like politicians, while their supporters behave more like fanatical supporters of politicians. Football administrators spent the time flexing muscles, raising their egos, blackmailing and defaming each other, and mobilizing supporters for propaganda war against each other, while Cameroon football in dying.
When one of Cameroon’s football legend, Samuel Eto’o Fils was voted as President of the Cameroon Football Federation commonly known by the French acronym, FECAFOOT, in December 2021, there was hope for a better future for Cameroon football. But during the four year mandate which will be ending in a few weeks, the situation of Cameroon football has instead degenerated.
Things have degenerated to the level where even the Central Africa Republic (CAR) has become courageous enough, that is was able to eliminate Cameroon in the qualifier for the last CHAN. Worse still, the elimination of Cameroon by CAR took place at home (Bafoussam). Also, like in past couple of years, all Cameroonian teams have been eliminated from the ongoing CAF competitions. Cotton Sport of Garoua that used to bring honour to Cameroon in CAF competitions has, become more of a shadow itself as regard performance. The Under 17 female national football team recently returned from the world cup with zero point, after losing all three matches in the group phase of the World Cup, and thus knocked out. The senior male national team, despite the talents it parades, will have to play the competition for ‘best losers’, to search for a World Cup ticket, while a certain Cape Verde, qualified directly to play at the 2026 World Cup, from Cameroon’s zone.
The Senior Female National Football Team That Used To Sparkle On World Stage
Cameroon’s senior female football team used to create sensation at the world stage. At the women’s world cup in Canada, goal merchant, Gaelle Enganamouith, emerged one the highest scorers. In one of the female world cups played on European soil, Nchout Njoya Ajara scored what was rated by FIFA as one of the most beautiful goals of the tournament. But then things have degenerated to the point where last week, Cameroon for the second consecutive times, was unable to qualify on the pitch for WAFCON. It is thanks to CAF’s decision, to increase the number of teams at WAFCON 2026, that has rescued Cameroon, to enable it participate in WAFCON 2026.
Yet, like the senior male national football team, it is not the talents that Cameroon lacks for its senior female national football team. Nchout Njoya Ajara, Ngo Mbeleck Genevieve, Ndzana Fegue Collette, Ngock Monique, Bawaou Ange, Meffoumetou Tcheno Claudine, Brenda Tabe, Aboudi Onguene Gabrielle, and others, are all players that used to do well in their clubs, and also used to make the national team to sparkle. But today though they continue to perform well in their different clubs, their good performance at club level, is no longer reflected in the performances of the national team.
