South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies have been drawn in Group A alongside hosts and debutants Athlético FC d’Abidjan in the upcoming 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League on Monday, 9 October 2023 in Abidjan, the capital of Cote d’Ivoire.
Joining them was Morocco’s Casablanca and JKT Queens of Tanzania, while defending champions AS FAR of Morocco headlines Group B along with Ampem Darkoa of Ghana, Huracanes of Equatorial Guinea and AS Mande of Mali.
The event was attended by, among others, the representatives of the clubs, while Banyana Banyana’s Janine van Wyk, as well as one of the legends of women’s football in Cote d’Ivoire, Fernande Tchetche, were the draw assistants.
The tournament, taking place from 5 – 19 November 2023, will be played in a round robin format in the group stages, with the top two progressing to the semi-finals as they contest the title of African Queens at club level.
The matches will be hosted in San Pedro and Korhogo, using the Stade Laurent Pokou and Stade Amadou Gon Coulibaly respectively.
The eight clubs taking part in the tournament consist of the reigning champions, the hosts, as well as six champions of the respective CAF zones.
This will be Sundowns Ladies’ third successive appearance in the competition – sharing the accolade with AS FAR of Morocco as the only two sides never to miss the tournament since formation.
The Brazilians are the inaugural champions after lifting the title back in 2021, but were dethroned by AS FAR last year.
Banyana Ba Style qualified for this year’s edition when they claimed gold last month in Durban at the regional qualifier – the CAF Women’s Champions League COSAFA qualifier – following a fine run where they were unbeaten in five games, and hit the back of the net 21 times, conceding just one.
CAF WOMEN’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE, COTE D’IVOIRE 2023 DRAW RESULTS:
GROUP A:
Athlético FC d’Abidjan (CIV)
Sporting Casablanca (MAR)
Mamelodi Sundowns (RSA)
JKT Queens (TAN)
GROUP B:
AS FAR (MAR)
Ampem Darkoa (GHA)
Huracanes FC (EQG)
AS Mande (MLI)
| Association | Team | Qualifying method | Appearance |
| Ivory Coast | Athlético FC d’Abidjan (hosts) | 2022–23 Ivory Coast Women’s Championship champions | 1st |
| Morocco | AS FAR (holders) | 2022 CAF Women’s Champions League winners | 3rd |
| Morocco | SC Casablanca | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League UNAF Qualifiers champions (1st) | |
| Mali | AS Mandé | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League WAFU Zone A Qualifiers champions | 2nd |
| Ghana | Ampem Darkoa | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League WAFU Zone B Qualifiers champions | 1st |
| Tanzania | JKT Queens | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League CECAFA Qualifiers champions | 1st |
| Equatorial Guinea | Huracanes | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League UNIFFAC Qualifiers champions | 1st |
| South Africa | Mamelodi Sundowns | 2023 CAF Women’s Champions League COSAFA Qualifiers Champions | 3rd |
By Matlhomola Morake
