The group stage of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations has wrapped up in Morocco, and it left behind a clear impression: African women’s football is deeper and more competitive than it’s ever been. Here’s where the level of play stands, and what’s coming next.
This edition, the first to feature sixteen teams, didn’t just make the bracket bigger. It exposed a real narrowing of the gap between the continent’s traditional powers and sides that used to play a supporting role at best. The clearest sign came in Group C, where Malawi beat Nigeria — the defending champions and the most decorated team in the tournament’s history — 3-1. A few years ago, that result would have seemed unthinkable. It says something real about how far the technical and physical level has come in teams that historically flew under the radar.
That tightening wasn’t limited to one group. In Group B, South Africa, one of the continent’s steadiest sides, could only manage a 2-2 draw against Ivory Coast before losing to Burkina Faso — a run of results pointing to a group stage that was, overall, far less predictable than in past editions. Elsewhere, some teams backed up their reputation with real firepower: Zambia put six past Egypt in Group C, while host nation Morocco cruised past Kenya 4-0 in Group A, playing in front of their own crowd.
Beyond the results themselves, this edition also produced some standout individual moments that speak to the technical growth of the women’s game on the continent. One goal in particular turned heads: a long-range free kick from an Algerian player against Kenya, already being talked about as one of the best strikes of the tournament so far. That kind of finish was rare in past editions — its arrival here says something about how much the level of execution has improved in a competition long dominated by a more predictable pecking order.
Algeria, for its part, topped Group A ahead of host Morocco, finishing with a solid record that included a win over Senegal and a victory against Kenya — further proof that several North African federations now field structured, competitive women’s programs at continental level.
What this group stage really shows is a shrinking gap between the top and bottom of the African bracket. Teams like Malawi, Zambia and Ivory Coast proved they can compete with — and sometimes beat — sides that looked stronger on paper. It fits a broader trend that observers of women’s football have been tracking: growing investment from African federations in their women’s national teams is starting to pay off, at a moment when every match carries extra weight, with the 2027 Women’s World Cup qualification race on the line.
Eight teams remain in the running, with quarterfinals set for August 8 and 9:
Ivory Coast vs Algeria looks like one of the standout matchups of the round, pitting two of the group stage’s most productive attacks against each other. Morocco vs South Africa brings a high-intensity clash between the host nation, backed by its home crowd, and one of the continent’s most experienced sides. Two more quarterfinals will pit the qualifiers from Groups C and D against each other, including the question of whether Malawi — author of the group stage’s biggest upset — can back it up against tougher opposition.
There’s more than the continental title riding on what happens next. The four semifinalists will qualify directly for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil, while teams eliminated in the quarterfinals get one more shot through a playoff, followed by an intercontinental playoff for whoever survives that. A million-dollar prize awaits whichever team lifts the trophy.
The schedule continues through the semifinals before the final, set for Sunday, August 16 at 8 p.m. local time in Rabat. If the level seen in the group stage holds up through the knockout rounds, this edition could be remembered as the one where African women’s football made a real collective leap — a step away from the near-total dominance of a handful of nations that defined past tournaments.