WOMEN'S FOOTBALL
Statistical preview of Germany- Morocco Women’s World Cup match
Two-time champions Germany and debutants Morocco kick their FIFA Women’s World Cup campaigns off in Group H as they meet at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, the same ground where Nigeria’s Super Falcons gamely held the Olympic champions, Canada last Friday
Here are striking points to note:
- Winners in 2003 and 2007, Germany’s qualification for the finals in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand has seen them, like Nigeria’s Super Falcons,maintain their record of appearing at every edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup since the tournament was first staged in 1991.
- Morocco have rewritten the history books after qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time. In doing so, they also become the first Arab nation to reach the finals. The Atlas Lionessessecured their spot at the tournament after finishing runners-up at the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations – their best-ever performance in the continental showpiece.
- Head-to-Head: Both teams have never met at the Women’s World Cup.
- Germany have never failed to qualify for the knockout phase in their previous eight tournament campaigns. They became the first nation to win back-to-back editions of the Women’s World Cup when they triumphed in 2003 and 2007.
- The Germans, tagged Die Nationalelf, have lost only one of their 24 group-stage matches in the tournament. They have won 15 and drawn four of their 19 group outings since a 3-2 defeat to Sweden in 1995.
- Die Nationalelfhave won their opening fixture in seven of their eight appearances at the finals, with the only exception being a 1-1 draw against Italy in 1999.
- Germany have won and kept a clean sheet in each of their previous five FIFA Women’s World Cup matches against African nations.
- Morocco earned their place at the finals courtesy of their exploits at the 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, where they finished runners-up to South Africa. Ghizlane Chebbak captained the team at the continental competition, playing a pivotal role in their run to the final en route to claiming the Player of the Tournament crown.
GERMANY TEAM FACTS
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TEAM RECORDS
- Overall record: Play44, Win 30, Draw 5, Lost 9, Goals For 121. Goals Against 39 Goal Difference: 82
- Biggest win: 11-0 Germany v. Argentina (10/09/2007)
- Biggest defeat: 0-4 Germany v. Sweden (29/11/1991)
- Highest scoring match: 11 goals – Germany 11-0 Argentina (10/09/2007)
- Most goals scored in a match: 11 – Germany 11-0 Argentina (10/09/2007)
- Most goals conceded in a match: 5 – Germany 2-5 United States (27/11/1991)
- Most goals scored at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: 25 – 2003 (6 matches)
- Fewest goals scored at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: 7 – 2011 (4 matches)
- Most goals conceded at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: 10 – 1991 (6 matches)
- Fewest goals conceded at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: 0 – 1991 (6 matches)
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP STREAKS
- Successive wins: 7 (2003-2007 and 2007-2011)
- Successive defeats: 2 (1991 and 2015) Successive draws: 1 (five times)
- Successive matches without a defeat: 15 (2003-2011)
- Successive matches without a win: 3 (2015)
- Successive matches with a goal scored: 11 (1999-2007)
- Successive matches without scoring: 2 (2015)
- Successive clean sheets: 6 (2007)
MOROCCO TEAM FACTS
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TEAM RECORDS
- Overall record: Play0. Win 0, Draw 0, Lost 0, Goals For 0, Goals Against 0, Goal Difference 0.
- Biggest win: nil
- Biggest defeat: nil
- Highest scoring match: nil
- Most goals scored in a match: nil
- Most goals conceded in a match: nil
- Most goals scored at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: nil
- Fewest goals scored at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: nil
- Most goals conceded at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: nil
- Fewest goals conceded at a FIFA Women’s World Cup: nil
FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP STREAKS
- Successive wins: nil
- Successive defeats: nil
- Successive draws: nil
- Successive matches without a defeat: nil
- Successive matches without a win: nil
- Successive matches with a goal scored: nil
- Successive matches without scoring: nil
- Successive clean sheets: nil
Nigeria’s Flamingos have once again confirmed their status as one of the most consistent teams in world youth football after securing qualification for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup with a thrilling 5-3 victory over the Benin Republic in Lomé on Saturday.
The victory handed the Nigerian girls an 8-5 aggregate success over two legs and ensured their place at the global showpiece in Morocco later this year.
In doing so, the Flamingos maintained Nigeria’s remarkable record as one of only seven countries to have qualified for every edition of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup since the competition was launched in 2008.
The exclusive group also includes Canada, Germany, Ghana, Japan, DPR Korea and New Zealand.
Having carried a slender 3-2 advantage from last weekend’s first leg in Ikenne, Ogun State, Coach Akeem Busari’s side arrived in Lomé determined to leave nothing to chance, and they produced an attacking display that ultimately proved too much for their hosts.
Nigeria made a dream start when Mary Dustan opened the scoring in the sixth minute. Benin Republic responded almost immediately, drawing level three minutes later to briefly raise hopes of a comeback.
The Flamingos, however, quickly regained control of the contest.
Esther Stephen restored Nigeria’s lead in the 15th minute before Queen Joseph struck five minutes later to give the visitors a comfortable 3-1 advantage within the opening 20 minutes.
Although the Beninese girls fought back bravely and managed to stay in the contest, the Nigerian side showed composure and maturity whenever the pressure mounted.
Queen Joseph emerged as one of the stars of the encounter, scoring her second goal of the match in the 76th minute to help seal a 5-3 victory and extinguish any lingering hopes of a Benin revival.
The qualification continues Nigeria’s proud tradition in the competition, where the Flamingos have become one of the tournament’s most familiar faces.
Since the inaugural edition in New Zealand in 2008, Nigeria has never failed to qualify, a feat matched by only six other nations worldwide. Their consistency has made them one of Africa’s most reliable representatives at the age-grade level and a respected force on the global stage.
The Flamingos’ best performance came at the 2022 tournament in India, where they claimed the bronze medal to become the first Nigerian team to finish on the podium at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
With qualification now secured, attention will turn to preparations for Morocco 2026, where the Nigerian youngsters will once again test themselves against the finest emerging talents from across the globe.
For Busari and his players, Saturday’s victory was about more than just defeating Benin Republic. It was another chapter in a remarkable record of consistency that has seen Nigeria remain ever-present at every edition of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
The challenge now is to transform another qualification campaign into a title challenge when the world gathers in Morocco.
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Spain thrashed England 4-0 to move a step closer to automatic qualification for next year’s Women’s World Cup finals, with Germany booking their spot thanks to a comfortable 2-0 home win over Norway in the penultimate round of European qualifiers on Friday.
With the top teams from each of the four A groups qualifying automatically, Germany’s win gave them an unassailable four-point lead over Norway in Group A4 with one game left, while Spain and England are both locked on 12 points at the top of Group A3.
England’s hopes of securing a spot with a win in Mallorca were quickly snuffed out, with Patri Guijarro giving the Spaniards the lead in the 19th minute and Alexia Putellas making it 2-0 before the break.
There appeared to be nothing England could do to stop the Spanish juggernaut, with Putellas adding a second goal 10 minutes after the break and Claudio Pina putting the icing on the cake with a goal from a superb pass by Aitana Bonmati to make it 4-0.
England retain a chance of qualifying directly, but they will have to get a better result when they host Ukraine next Tuesday than Spain manage in their final fixture away to Iceland.
There was late drama in Group A2 as Ireland’s Amber Barrett netted a 90th-minute goal to snatch a 3-2 home win over the Netherlands to move above the Dutch and into second place in the group, one point behind leaders France, who beat Poland 2-0.
The Irish play France in their final game in Grenoble, with the Dutch taking on Poland at home.
Earlier, Pernille Harder came off the bench and scored the winner for Denmark as they downed neighbours Sweden 2-1 to end the Swedes’ hopes of qualifying directly.
The Danes top Group A1 on 11 points ahead of their final game against bottom side Serbia, while second-placed Italy, who are three points behind the leaders, next host Sweden.
-Reuters
By Kunle Solaja.
Nigeria’s Falconets have been handed a challenging but promising draw for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland after they were placed in Group F alongside former champions Spain, China PR and debutants New Caledonia.
The draw for the 12th edition of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup was conducted in Lodz on Thursday, setting the stage for the tournament scheduled to run from 5 to 27 September across four Polish cities.
Nigeria, one of Africa’s most successful teams at the competition, will face a stern opening-round test against European powerhouse Spain, which won the title in Costa Rica in 2022. China PR also brings a considerable pedigree to the group, while New Caledonia will be making their maiden appearance at the global finals.
The Falconets will be hoping to improve on their performance at the last edition and rekindle memories of their best outings, when they reached the final in 2010 and 2014.
Hosts Poland headline Group A alongside Argentina, Benin and Mexico, while defending champions Korea DPR begin their title defence in Group E against Colombia, Costa Rica and Portugal.
Other intriguing group-stage fixtures include Brazil, England, Canada and Tanzania in Group B, while France, Korea Republic, Ghana and Ecuador make up Group C. Group D features former champions Japan and USA alongside New Zealand and Italy.
The full draw is as follows:
- Group A: Poland, Mexico, Argentina, Benin
- Group B: Brazil, England, Canada, Tanzania
- Group C: France, Korea Republic, Ghana, Ecuador
- Group D: Japan, USA, New Zealand, Italy
- Group E: Korea DPR, Colombia, Costa Rica, Portugal
- Group F: Spain, Nigeria, China PR, New Caledonia
The tournament will mark Poland’s first major global women’s football event, with matches to be played in Bielsko-Biała, Katowice, Lodz and Sosnowiec.
Six nations — Benin, Ecuador, New Caledonia, Poland, Portugal and Tanzania — will make their debut appearances, while Korea DPR and the USA are both chasing a record fourth title.
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