WAFCON 2026 To Feature 16 Teams From 12 Team Format By CAF

Anthony Ufoh

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) have stated that the 2026 TotalEnergies Women’s African Cup of Nations (WAFCON) will now feature a 16-team format instead of the former 12-format structure.

Again, the 16-format structure will be held in Morocco between March 17 and April 3, 2026.

Nigeria’s Super Falcons, who have won the most titles (10x), are one of the favourites along with the Lionesses of Cameroon, “Les Éléphantes of the Ivory Coast, Mali and Egypt, all powerhouses on the African female soccer scene expected to strut it out in the finals.

The decision is in line with CAF’s strategic objective to boost competitiveness and quicken the growth of women’s football throughout the continent, the organisation said in a statement posted on its website on Wednesday.

The statement reads, “As the qualification phase for the 2026 edition has already been completed, the Executive Committee has approved the selection mechanism to determine the four additional Teams.

“Based on the current FIFA Women’s World Rankings, the top four teams from those eliminated in the final qualifying round have been selected to complete the list of participants.

“The following teams will therefore join the finals of the TotalEnergies CAF WAFCON Morocco 2026: Cameroon (66th in the FIFA ranking), Cote d’Ivoire (71), Mali (79), and Egypt (95),” the body added.

These four teams would join holders Nigeria, past champions South Africa, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Senegal, Tanzania, and Zambia – all of whom have qualified.

Morocco are the team to complete this number, and they are in the tournament as they are the host nation.