2026 WAFCON to Determine Africa’s Qualification Pathways for 2027 Women’s World Cup

The 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) will serve as the qualifying tournament to decide the African nations advancing to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil, global football governing body FIFA has confirmed.

According to a qualification guide published by FIFA on Sunday, four African teams will earn direct entry to the tournament by reaching the WAFCON semi-finals. Two additional African nations will have an opportunity to qualify via an intercontinental play-off tournament.

The 16 competing nations are Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.

The tournament structure will split the 16 teams into four groups, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the quarter-finals. The four winning quarter-finalists will automatically secure their spots for Brazil 2027.

Meanwhile, the four losing quarter-finalists will compete in play-off matches to decide the two African representatives for the 10-nation FIFA Women’s World Cup Play-Off Tournament, which will run in phases between late 2026 and February 2027.

The 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup is scheduled to take place in Brazil from June 24 to July 25, 2027, marking the first time the tournament will be held in South America.