BY KUNLE SOLAJA.

Hosts Morocco will launch their quest for a first-ever Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) title when they face Kenya in their Group A opener at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium on Sunday.

The match, scheduled to kick off at 21:00 local time (20:00 GMT), pits tournament favourites Morocco against a Kenyan side returning to the continental finals for only the second time.

History strongly favours the hosts in WAFCON opening matches. Across the previous 13 editions of the tournament, host nations have won their opening fixture on 11 occasions, with only one defeat and one draw recorded.

The only host to lose its opening game was South Africa, who suffered a 3-0 defeat to Ghana in 2004. Since then, tournament hosts have gone unbeaten in their opening matches across the last nine editions, registering eight victories and one draw.

Morocco were responsible for ending an eight-tournament streak of opening-match victories by hosts when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Zambia at the 2024 finals. Before that result, the previous six host nations had all begun their campaigns with clean sheets.

The Atlas Lionesses will be hoping to restore the tradition of hosts making a flying start as they open their fifth WAFCON campaign. Kenya, meanwhile, are appearing at the finals for only the second time after making their tournament debut in 2016.

Sunday’s encounter will also be the first-ever WAFCON meeting between Morocco and Kenya.

Morocco have faced East African opposition only once before at the finals, defeating Uganda 3-1 in the group stage in 2022. Rosella Ayane and captain Ghizlane Chebbak both scored from the penalty spot, while Nesryne El Chad added the third goal in a comfortable victory.

For Kenya, the match presents a new challenge as they face a host nation at the tournament for the first time. During their only previous appearance in 2016, all three of their group-stage matches came against West African opponents.

The history of host nations reaching the final will also encourage Morocco. Tournament hosts have contested the championship match on nine previous occasions, with Nigeria lifting the trophy at home in 1998, 2002 and 2006, while Equatorial Guinea achieved the feat in 2008 and 2012.

However, recent history also serves as a warning. The last three host nations to reach the final—Cameroon in 2016 and Morocco in both 2022 and 2024—were all beaten in the title decider. South Africa in 2000 remain the only other hosts to have finished as runners-up on home soil.

The biggest opening-day victory by a host nation remains Nigeria’s emphatic 8-0 triumph over Morocco in the 1998 tournament, a result that highlights how far the Atlas Lionesses have progressed over the past two decades.

Having reached the finals in each of the last two editions, Morocco now harbour ambitions of going one step further after successive runners-up finishes. A convincing start against Kenya would strengthen belief that the hosts can finally end their wait for a maiden continental crown.

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Kenya are back on the continental stage after a 10-year absence, with the Harambee Starlets determined to make a stronger impression at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco.

The East Africans will make only their second appearance at the tournament, having debuted in 2016, where they exited at the group stage without earning a point. This time, however, Kenya arrive with renewed confidence after an impressive qualification campaign and under the guidance of head coach Beldine Odemba.

Kenya booked their place at the finals by overcoming Tunisia and Gambia in the qualifying rounds. Their campaign began with a hard-fought 1-0 aggregate victory over Tunisia. After a goalless first leg at home, Terry Engesha scored the decisive goal in Sousse to seal a memorable away win and qualification to the next round.

The Harambee Starlets then dispatched Gambia 4-1 on aggregate in the second qualifying round. HB Koge striker Mwanalima Adam Jereko, who had already found the net in the first leg, scored the only goal of the return fixture to complete a convincing aggregate triumph.

Kenya’s only previous WAFCON appearance came in Cameroon in 2016, where they endured a difficult introduction to Africa’s premier women’s football competition. They suffered successive 3-1 defeats to Ghana and Mali before losing 4-0 to eventual champions Nigeria.

Despite the disappointing results, Kenya made history when Esse Akida scored their first-ever WAFCON goal, giving them an early lead against Ghana in their tournament opener before the West Africans rallied with three second-half goals to claim victory.

A decade later, Kenya are still searching for their first points, first victory and first clean sheet in the competition, milestones they hope to achieve in Morocco.

Preparations for the tournament have included participation in the FIFA Women’s Series held in Nairobi in April, where Kenya gained valuable international experience against Australia, India and fellow WAFCON finalists Malawi.

Leading the team is Odemba, a former Kenya international who took over as head coach in September 2023. A CAF A Licence holder, she previously coached Kenya’s Under-20 women’s national team and guided Police Bullets to the 2023/24 Kenyan Women’s Premier League title.

With a blend of experienced campaigners and emerging talent, Kenya will be hoping their long-awaited return to WAFCON marks the beginning of a new chapter, one that finally delivers their first victory and points at Africa’s biggest women’s football tournament.

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Algeria and Senegal will write a new chapter in Women’s Africa Cup of Nations history when they meet for the first time in the competition in their Group A opener at the Rabat Olympic Stadium on Sunday.

The encounter, which kicks off at 18:00 local time (17:00 GMT), marks the first-ever WAFCON meeting between the two nations as they begin their quest for a place in the knockout stages of the Morocco 2026 tournament.

Although their women’s teams have never crossed paths at the continental finals, there is history between the countries through the men’s game. Their most memorable Africa Cup of Nations meeting came in the 2019 AFCON final in Cairo, where Algeria edged Senegal 1-0 thanks to Baghdad Bounedjah’s early strike to lift the continental crown.

For Algeria, Sunday’s clash presents another test against West African opposition, a category of opponents they have found difficult over the years. The North Africans have faced West African teams eight times at WAFCON, recording two victories, one draw and five defeats.

Both of Algeria’s victories came in the group stage. They defeated Mali 3-0 in 2004 before overcoming Ghana 1-0 in their opening match of the 2014 tournament. However, they have also suffered opening-match defeats to West African rivals, losing 4-0 to Nigeria in 2004 and falling to Ghana in both the 2010 and 2018 editions.

Senegal, meanwhile, will be looking to break new ground against North African opposition. The Lionesses have yet to score a goal against teams from the region in three previous meetings.

Their record includes back-to-back 1-0 defeats to hosts Morocco in the group stages of the 2022 and 2024 tournaments, while they also played out a goalless draw with Tunisia in a 2022 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifying repechage before advancing on penalties to the intercontinental play-offs.

The West Africans are also familiar with challenging regional rivals, having previously faced Nigeria and Ghana three times each and Mali twice at the continental finals.

With both sides eager to make a positive start to their Group A campaign, Sunday’s historic first WAFCON meeting promises to offer an early indication of their ambitions in Morocco 2026.

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