International Football
After teams’ arrivals; all set for Aisha Buhari Cup
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
Eko Hotels, the place of abode for the six teams featuring at the inaugural invitational international football fiesta, the Aisha Buhari Cup is already bubbling with activities.
By Monday, all the five invited teams that will join the hosts, Super Falcons of Nigeria, have arrived.
For the tournament, the teams are in two pools – A and B. Nigeria heads the Pool A which also have Morocco and Mali. They play their round robin series at the remodelled water front stadium, the Mobolaji Johnson Arena that was previously named Onikan Stadium.
The Pool 2, head by South Africa has Cameroon and Ghana. Their matches will be played at the renovated Agege Stadium in Lagos mainland.
www.sportsvillagesquare.com brings to you points of interests on the participating teams.
NIGERIA
- The host team and leading lights in women’s football in Africa became the first African side to play at the inaugural FIFA Women’s World Cup in China in 1991 after defeating all their opponents home-and-away in the qualifying series.
- For many years, the Super Falcons remained undefeated by any African side. They had a 28 match unbeaten run from their debut match of 16 February 1991 to 10 December 2002.
- Nigeria’s Asisat Oshoala and Perpetua Nwokcha are record winners of the African Woman Footballer of the Year Award having each won four times.
- Nigerian women have won the African Woman’s Footballer of the Year Award more that women from other countries. In 17 editions, Nigerian women won 11 times.
- Nigeria’s Super Falcons have won the African Women’s Championships more than any other team. In 13 editions, they won 11 times.
MOROCCO
- Morocco have featured at two editions of the Women African Women Championships .
- Moroccan women drew their first ever international match, 1-1 with South Africa on 5 July 1998.
- Morocco’s biggest defeat, 8-0, was inflicted by Nigeria’s Super Falcons on 17 October 1998 in Kaduna.
Mali
Mali’s women’s national played their first international match against Cote d’Ivoire on 9 August 2002. It ended 2-2.
Mali’s biggest win was a 8-0 defeat of Guinea in Conakry on 23 February 2008.
Mali’s biggest loss was a 8-0 defeat by Nigeria on 9 April 2015 in Abuja
SOUTH AFRICA
- South Africa’s Banyana Banyana have featured in two Olympic Games in 2012 and 2016.
- South Africa won their very first international match, 14-0 against Swaziland (now Eswatini) on 30 May 1993.
- South Africa’s biggest win, 14-0 was against Comoros on 31 July 2019.
- South Africa’s biggest loss was 13-0 to China on 7 September 2003.
- South Africa won the COSAFA Women’s Champions four times in a row; 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
- Banyana Banyana of South Africa made their AWCON debut in 1995 and are beaten finalists a number of times: 1995, 2000, 2008, 2012 and 2018. They also have five players that have played over 100 games for their country.
Desire Oparanozie from Nigeria and Thembi Kgatlana of South Africa won the Golden Boot at the 2014 and 2018 AWCON finals respectively, with five goals each.
GHANA
- Ghana’s women’s national is named Black Queens has qualified for three FIFA Women’s World Cup finals in 1999, 2003 and 2007 as well as reaching the final of the Women AFCON Cup thrice, in 1998, 2002 and 2006.
- Ghana’s Gabrielle Onguene, Galle Enganamouit and Ajara Nchout have three FIFA World Cup goals to their names.
- Ghana’s Black Queens were the ones that broke the 28-match winning streak of Nigeria’s Super Falcons in Africa when they defeated Nigeria 1-0 in Warri during the 2002 African Women’s Championship in Warri on 10 December 2002.
- Ghana’s first international match was a 5-1 loss to Nigeria on 16 February 1991 in Lagos.
- Ghana’s biggest win was a 13-0 defeat of Guinea in Conakry on 11 July 2004.
Ghana’s biggest loss was a a 11-0 loss to Germany on 22 July 2016.
- CAMEROON
- Cameroon have been runners-up at the African Women Championship four times in 1991, 2004, 2014 and 2016, losing to fierce rivals Nigeria on all occasions.
- Cameroon’s first international match was a 2-0 loss to Nigeria on 15 June 1991.
- Cameroon’s biggest win is a 8-1 defeat of Mozambique on 13 September 2018.
- Cameroon’s biggest loss was a 6-0 loss to Nigeria on 27 October 1998 in Kaduna and to France 10 October 2018 in Paris.
- Cameroon’s Indomitable Lionesses beat Ecuador 6-0 at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup to become the first African side to score so many goals in a single match in the history of the global soccer fiesta.
Brazil will round off their 2025 calendar with two friendly matches in Europe next month, taking on Senegal and Tunisia as part of their preparations for the 2026 World Cup, the Brazilian FA (CBF) announced on Thursday.
The five-time world champions, managed by Carlo Ancelotti, will face Senegal on November 15 at Emirates Stadium in London and, three days later, they will meet Tunisia in Lille, France.
The CBF announced that these fixtures were designed to “provide the team with valuable experience against African opposition” ahead of next year’s tournament in North America.
After the conclusion of the South American qualifiers, the choice of opponents follows October’s encounters against Asian teams, which saw Brazil beat South Korea 5-0 but suffer a stunning first defeat to Japan.
With coach Ancelotti facing limited preparation time after arriving in May from Real Madrid, the matches form part of a broader plan to expose Brazil to a variety of playing styles in preparation for next year’s the World Cup.
Looking ahead to March 2026, the CBF has indicated that Brazil’s next set of friendlies will likely be against top-level European nations, with the U.S. as the expected venue.
Ancelotti has been steadily implementing his vision for the squad and has emphasised the importance of adapting to diverse tactical challenges, particularly against teams from other continents.
CBF sources indicated that the plan for the three remaining international breaks would be to make final observations regarding players and tactical adjustments in November, lock in the starting line-up in March and strengthen ties with Brazilian fans with a final friendly at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracana before departing for the tournament.
The upcoming friendlies against Senegal and Tunisia will provide an opportunity to test Brazil’s readiness against two of Africa’s strongest sides.
Senegal boast a formidable squad featuring Sadio Mane, Nicolas Jackson and Kalidou Koulibaly. They shocked Brazil 4-2 in their last encounter, a friendly played in Lisbon two years ago.
Tunisia, meanwhile, are known for their defensive organisation and have consistently performed well in African competitions.
Back in September they were the second African team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup with two games to spare.
-Reuters
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Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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