Ghana’s Black Queens will face Côte d’Ivoire in a crucial 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) play-off on Thursday, August 13, with a place in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Play-Off Tournament at stake.
The Black Queens were denied automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup after suffering a 2-1 defeat to Malawi in their WAFCON quarter-final clash at the Al Madina Stadium in Rabat on Sunday night.
Ghana made a bright start to the contest and took the lead through Cynthia Boakye-Hlorkah. However, Malawi responded quickly, with Temwa Chawinga restoring parity before Rose Kadzere completed the comeback with the winning goal in the 79th minute.
The defeat ended Ghana’s hopes of reaching the WAFCON semi-finals and securing one of Africa’s automatic places at the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
However, the Black Queens still have another opportunity to keep their World Cup ambitions alive.
Ghana must now overcome Côte d’Ivoire in the African play-off to secure a place in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Play-Off Tournament.
The other African play-off will see defending WAFCON champions Nigeria take on South Africa, with the winners of the two matches advancing to the global play-off tournament as Africa’s representatives.
The African play-offs involve the four teams that were eliminated in the WAFCON quarter-finals, with two sides earning the right to represent the continent at the FIFA World Cup Play-Off Tournament.
The global play-off tournament will provide an additional route to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
The two African representatives will join teams from other confederations in the competition, which will determine the remaining places at the global showpiece.
The first phase of the FIFA Play-Off Tournament is scheduled to take place in November and December 2026 at a centralised venue.
Six teams, including the two African representatives, will compete, with the top two advancing to the final phase in February 2027.
They will then be joined by four teams from Concacaf, CONMEBOL and UEFA. The six teams will be divided into three knockout paths, with the winner of each path earning qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
For Ghana, attention now turns to the decisive clash against Côte d’Ivoire on August 13.
Victory would keep the Black Queens’ hopes of reaching the World Cup alive, while defeat would bring an end to their campaign and extend Ghana’s wait to return to the global tournament, having last featured at the Women’s World Cup in 2007.
