Sports

African ladies converge in Morocco for Wafcon ‘war’

Published

2 years ago

July 3, 2022

Lovers of female football on the African continent will be treated to a spectacular soccer ‘war’ for the next three weeks as the best soccer nations gather in Morocco for the 14th edition of the Women Africa Cup of Nations tagged Wafcon.

The female soccer fiesta which kicked off on Saturday, will see the two Moroccan cities of Rabat and Casablanca play host to the finest female soccer artistry to come out of the continent.

The 12 nations will also battle for the prestigious trophy while aiming to upstage perenial champions, the Super Falcons of Nigeria who have won the trophy a record nine times.

The tournament will also be more intense as it doubles as the African qualifiers to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, with the top four teams at the WAFCON automatically qualifying for the Mundial in Australia and New Zealand, while two more teams will advance into the inter-confederation play-offs to contest for the final three FIFA Women’s World Cup spots.

Super Falcons of Nigeria is the clear favourites to win Wafcon 2022 (Photo Credit: CAF)

The 2022 Wafcon will also be the first time 12 teams will be participating in the tournament with Togo, Burundi, Burkina Faso and Botswana making their debuts.

As usual, Nigeria’s Super Falcons are the clear favourites with its array of stars including Barcelona’s Azeezat Oshoala, Rasheedat Ajibade of Atletico Madrid and free scoring Gift Monday of Bayelsa Queens set to paint Morocco with goals, the quest for a 10th title may not be far fetched.

But they will have their biggest threats in the Bayana Bayana of South Africa, a team that has proven to be one of the best in the continent in recent times.

The two rivals will begin their qufit for the trophy on Monday, July 4, while Nigeria will battle debutants Botswana on Thursday, July 7 and another debutants, Burundi on July 10th.

Morocco celebrating their goal at the Wafcon (Photo Credit: CAF)

In the opening match played on Saturday at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, hosts Morocco defeated a spirited Burkina Faso side 1-0 courtesy of a free kick goal by inspirational captain Ghizlane Chebbak in the 29th minute and held on to run out victorious.

Click to comment

Sports

South Africa’s FA president Danny Jordaan arrested on fraud, theft allegations

Published

21 hours ago

November 13, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The President of South African Football Association (SAFA), Danny Jordaan, has been arrested on allegations of fraud and theft.

Jordaan, who was pivotal to the country hosting the first-ever FIFA World Cup tournament in Africa in 2010, is being accused of using about R1.3 million ($72,372) of SAFA funds to hire a PR firm and a private security company for his personal benefit.

His arrest follows a raid carried out by the country’s Special Investigating Unit (SPU) at the offices of SAFA in March where it was alleged that an assortment of electronic gadgets and files were seized for further investigation, thus leading to the arrest.

SA Police spokesperson, Katlego Mogale, who confirmed Jordaan’s arrest, told journalists that he was
arrested along with one other official and a businessman and are expected to appear in the Palm Ridge Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

Sports

Ghana Black Stars in disarray as 8 players withdraw from 2025 Afcon qualifiers

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The chances of the Black Stars of Ghana qualifying for the 2025 AFCON seems slimmer by the day with the withdrawal of eight first team players from the squad as the team prepares for crucial qualifiers against against Angola on November 15 in Luanda and against Niger at the Accra Sports Stadium on November 18.

The latest to pull out of the double headed qualifiers are Inaki Williams and Antoine Semenyo due to injuries, with the withdrawals forcing head coach Otto Addo, to scramble for last minute replacements to reshape his squad with little time to spare.

Other top stars who have withdrawn from the team are Thomas Partey, Tariq Lamptey and Jerome Opoku

Others are Jonas Adjetey, Alexander Djiku and Joseph Paintsil, all of whom have been sidelined due to injuries or personal reasons.

Ghana currently sits in third place in Group F with two points, trailing Angola, who leads with 12 points, and Sudan with seven points.

To stand any chance of qualifying, the Black Stars must win all their remaining matches and hope Sudan stumble in their final games.