The TotalEnergies Caf Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon), Morocco 2024 gets under way on Saturday as South Africa seek to defend the title they won in North Africa three years ago.
The 12 competing teams have been drawn into three groups, each containing four sides, with the top two and the two best third-placed sides advancing to the quarterfinals.
SuperSport.com previews the chances of the four teams in Group C, which includes the defending champions.
The #TotalEnergiesWAFCON2024 trophy has been unveiled 🤩🏆#WAFCON2024 | #HereForHer
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📷: @CAFwomen pic.twitter.com/eXFPZ8FrT8
SOUTH AFRICA
COACH: Dr Desiree Ellis (South Africa)
BEST FINISH: Winners (2022)
HISTORY AT WAFCON: South Africa’s record in the women’s continental finals was a tale of woe with five final losses before they finally got over the line at the last finals in Morocco in 2022. A 2-1 win over the hosts secured the long-awaited title and lifted a weight off the shoulders of the team. The key now will be to back it up with another win.
KEY PLAYERS:
Refiloe Jane: The veteran midfielder brings bags of experience and football intellect, but has been mostly sidelined for the last two years since she was injured at the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup. But she remains a commanding force in the middle of the park.
Linda Motlhalo: The playmaker is both a creator and scorer of goals and one of the best players on the ball in the South African team. She also has years of experience of playing abroad and has been a key part of the team’s success in the last seven or eight years.
#TotalEnergiesWAFCON2024 gets underway in 2️⃣ 𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬.
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12 Nations in three groups will go head-to-head for the 𝐁𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐒𝐓 title in Women's football in Africa.#HereForHer pic.twitter.com/Tkpj5EdPLa
Jermaine Seoposenwe: With no Tembi Kgatlana in the squad, much of the scoring burden will fall on the experienced Seoposenwe and Hildah Magaia. Seoposenwe has already said she will retire from international football at the end of this tournament, so this will be her swansong.
CHANCES: South Africa have lost a lot of experience in the last few years and Kgatlana will be a miss, but they have the players to go back-to-back at the TotalEnergies Caf Wafcon. It might come down to small details and clutch moments at the business end of the tournament.
GHANA
COACH: Kim Björkegren (Sweden)
BEST FINISH: Runners-Up (1998, 2002, 2006)
HISTORY AT WAFCON: Ghana are still waiting for their first title, having come agonisingly close in the past. They have made the final on three previous occasions, losing every one to West African rivals Nigeria. They have found the going tougher more recently, having only made it out of the group stages once in five attempts since 2008. They did not qualify for the previous finals in 2022.
KEY PLAYERS:
Princess Marfo: Marfo joined top National women’s soccer League side Bay United last year, having also had a spell in Denmark with FC Nordsjælland. She is a product of the Right to Dream academy and one of the most exciting young talents in the team.
Portia Boakye: The captain has had a storied career that has seen her play in Sweden, Turkey and more recently Israel. Now 36, she is reaching the end of her career, but remains a positive influence on the side, and her experience will be key in what is otherwise a fairly young group.
Evelyn Badu: Badu is one of the young wave of players coming through and last year made the switch to France, where she plays for Fleury. She had been a star for Hasaacas Ladies in the CAF Women’s Champions League. She also had a spell in Norway.
CHANCES: Many of Ghana’s players have not played at this level before after the team missed out on qualification in 2022, but they have an energetic squad under coach Kim Björkegren. Recent results have been mixed, but they were competitive in a 3-1 loss to Nigeria last week. They should get out of the group, but perhaps not much further than that.
MALI
COACH: Mohamed Saloum (Mali)
BEST FINISH: Fourth (2018)
HISTORY AT WAFCON: Mali return to the continental finals having missed out in 2022. Four years earlier provided their best finish when they ended fourth in 2018, having never been past the group stages in six previous attempts before that. Fourth again would be a major achievement.
KEY PLAYERS:
Agueicha Diarra: The forward signed with Paris St Germain in 2024 and is the most accomplished of Mali’s players in what is otherwise a mostly home-based squad. She also spent some time in Morocco before making the switch to France, and will be key to their chances.
Aïssata Traoré: Troare is another player that Mali will rely heavily on for goals. She has past experience with Besiktas in Turkey and Guingamp in France, before joining Fleury last year. Like Diarra, she was part of the Mali side that finished fourth in 2018, so has experience of the continental finals.
Bintou Koite: The midfielder is one of the more experienced players in the Mali squad, having been part of their side that competed at both the 2016 and 2018 CAF TotalEnergies Caf Wafcon. She has spent time in Morocco at Raja Casablanca and is an ever-reliable competitor.
CHANCES: Mali come into the finals on the back of fourth place at the WAFU A women’s championship, where they lost to Sierra Leone in the semifinals and then Liberia in the bronze medal match. That does not perhaps bode well for their chances in Morocco, but they will certainly be no pushovers.
TANZANIA
COACH: Bakari Shime (Tanzania)
BEST FINISH: Group Stages (2010)
HISTORY AT WAFCON: Tanzania make just a second ever appearance at the continental finals having debuted in 2010. They took a single point from three games back then and failed to exit the group but will want to show their progress as a team since then.
KEY PLAYERS:
Clara Luvanga: Young forward Luvanga is among the many exciting talents in the Tanzania team having played in the second tier in Spain before making the switch to Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia. She was top scorer in the 2022 African U-17 Women's World Cup qualification with ten goals.
Opah Clement: The team captain is only 24 but has a long career behind her already. She plays for Juárez in Mexico but has also turned out for Besiktas in Turkey and in Chia with Henan Jianye. She is an accomplished forward and has been a key part of the Tanzania national team since her debut in 2019.
Enekia Lunyamila: Lunyamila is another chief source of goals for the side having helped the team with the Cosafa Women’s Championship title in 2021 when they were a guest nation. She plays in Mexico at Juárez, but has also featured for clubs in Morocco, Ukraine and Saudi Arabia. She has a lot of experience but is still only 23.
CHANCES: This will be a big step up for Tanzania and many of these players, but they will believe they can spring a surprise. They lost a friendly with Morocco 4-0 last week which probably speaks to their level, but before that were in excellent form as they lifted the CECAFA title by winning all four of their matches last month. But it will be a struggle to get out of the pool.
