Ivory Coast made a strong start in the opening round of the African qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup, securing a narrow but crucial 1-0 away win against Gambia on Friday.
In a tightly contested encounter at the Independence Stadium in Bakau, it was substitute Nahomie Bah who made the difference, finding the net just one minute after coming onto the pitch in the 64th minute.
Her decisive strike has handed the Ivorians the upper hand ahead of the return leg, scheduled for May 18 at the Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara in Ebimpé.
Victory in the second leg would see Ivory Coast progress to the next round, where they are set to face Morocco—one of several teams given a bye through the preliminary phase of the qualifiers.
The North Africans will enter the competition in the second qualifying round, joining a group of top-seeded nations in the region.
This initial stage marks the beginning of a four-round qualifying campaign designed to determine Africa’s four representatives at the U20 Women’s World Cup, which will be hosted in Poland in August 2026.
The road to qualification is demanding, with each tie critical in narrowing the field from across the continent.
Several teams remain exempt from this opening round due to higher seeding or past performance, including continental powerhouses such as Nigeria, Ghana, and South Africa.
They will join the qualifiers at later stages, making it vital for lower-ranked teams to make the most of early opportunities.
The first round continues this weekend, with a series of fixtures lined up on Sunday, May 11.
Matches include Malawi hosting the Central African Republic, Togo taking on Tunisia, Rwanda facing Zimbabwe, and South Sudan welcoming Djibouti.
Exempted from the first phase are: Nigeria, South Africa, Senegal, Algeria, Morocco, Cameroon, Mali, DR Congo, Benin, Guinea, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Egypt, Botswana, Mozambique, Eswatini, Uganda, Namibia, Burundi, Zambia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Angola.
As the qualification campaign unfolds, Ivory Coast’s early advantage positions them well to move forward—though they will need to finish the job at home to keep their World Cup dream alive.
