The 2026 CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) will be held from 26 July to 16 August. This is according to a revised Women’s International Match Calendar which has been confirmed by FIFA, following an online Council meeting held on Thursday, 19 March 2026 in Zurich, Switzerland.
The tournament was initially scheduled to be played from 17 March to 3 April but was postponed earlier this month.
Nigeria have won the title 10 times and are the reigning champions after defeating Morocco in the final last year.
The WAFCON issue was one of decisions announced by the world football governing body after their gathering.
While the new date has been confirmed by FIFA, the only snag is the release of players for national team duty, with the world football governing body only giving countries the period from 20 July 2026 – six days before the start of the continental championship – for the release of players. The 2026 tournament serves as a qualifier to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup that will be held in Brazil in June.
This will most definitely present a challenge to most teams as they will not have enough time to prepare adequately with their overseas-based players.
Other than the host nation, six countries have already qualified for the global women’s football showpiece in South America – the Philippines, Korea DPR, Australia, China PR, Korea Republic and Japan.
For the WAFCON, 16 nations will feature for the first time ever after the number was increased from 12.
The qualified teams are South Africa, Nigeria, Morocco, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Senegal, Tanzania and Zambia as well as debutants Malawi and Cape Verde.
Women’s Development:
In another new development, FIFA has announced that going forward, all FIFA women’s competition must have either the head coach and/or at least one of the assistant coaches, as well as one member of the team’s medical staff and two officials on the bench to be female. This will apply all youth and senior tournaments, national team and club competitions. The move will already be in place at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil next year but will debut this September at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Poland, followed by the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup and the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup later in 2026.
“The initiative is part of FIFA’s broader strategy to ensure that the rapid growth of the women’s game is matched by an increased representation of women in technical and leadership roles,” said FIFA in a statement.
The sentiment was echoed by Jill Ellis, FIFA’s Chief Football Officer:
“There are simply not enough women in coaching today. We must do more to accelerate change by creating clearer pathways, expanding opportunities, and increasing the visibility for women on our sidelines.”
2031 and 2035 FIFA WWC hosts:
In other developments, FIFA has announced that they will convene an Extra-Ordinary Congress before the end of this year to name the host countries for the 2031 and 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico and the United States are bidding for the 2031 edition, while England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are in the hat for 2035.
FIFA U17 WWC:
Also confirmed by the FIFA Council in their meeting is that the 2026 edition of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup will be held from 17 October to 7 November in Morocco.
By Matlhomola Morake
(additional reporting by FIFA.com)
