Ghana face Ivory Coast in crucial WAFCON World Cup play-off

Ghana’s Black Queens will face Côte d’Ivoire in a crucial play-off on Thursday, 13 August, with a place in the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup inter-confederation play-offs at stake.

The match is scheduled for 18:00 GMT.

The Black Queens were eliminated by Malawi in the WAFCON quarter-finals after a 2-1 defeat on Sunday. Under the tournament’s qualification format, the four quarter-final winners qualify directly for the 2027 Women’s World Cup, while the losing teams enter play-in matches for the two remaining African routes into the inter-confederation play-offs.

Ghana must therefore overcome Côte d’Ivoire to keep their World Cup hopes alive.

The Ivorians also enter the play-off after suffering a quarter-final defeat, leaving both West African sides with everything to play for in what promises to be a high-stakes encounter.

The other play-in tie will see Nigeria face South Africa at 21:00 GMT on 13 August. The winners of the two matches will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs, where they will have another opportunity to qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

For Ghana, the fixture provides another chance to extend their World Cup campaign after their impressive run to the WAFCON quarter-finals.

The Black Queens will now need to recover quickly from the disappointment against Malawi and produce a decisive performance against Côte d’Ivoire if they are to remain in contention for a place on the global stage.