Despite a disappointing start to the tournament, South Africa have secured a place in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after edging Burkina Faso 1-0 in Casablanca on Tuesday night.
Banyana Banyana, who opened their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Tanzania, bounced back to book a last-eight meeting with tournament hosts Morocco in a highly anticipated quarter-final clash in Rabat on Saturday.
Ivory Coast also advanced after defeating Tanzania 2-1 in the other Group B fixture. The Ivorians will now face Algeria in the second quarter-final from the group.
The South Africa-Morocco showdown carries added significance, with the 2026 WAFCON serving as Africa’s qualifying tournament for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Only the four semi-finalists will secure automatic qualification for the global showpiece.
Speaking after the victory, Banyana Banyana head coach Desiree Ellis praised her players but stressed that their attention would quickly turn to the crucial encounter against the hosts.
“We want to celebrate tonight, but history shows that we can do it. However, it doesn’t give us a divine right that it is going to happen. Nobody is going to give us anything if we don’t work for it,” Ellis said.
She acknowledged the challenge of facing Morocco in front of a partisan home crowd but expressed confidence in her team’s experience on the continental stage.
“It’s a different team with different challenges. The home crowd comes into play, but our players have travelled all over Africa and have been in situations where we had no fans and still came up with the result. We’ll celebrate tonight, travel to Rabat and then work out a plan,” she said.
Ellis also dismissed suggestions that previous victories over Morocco would give South Africa any advantage heading into Saturday’s encounter.
“History tells you what happened, but history doesn’t mean anything because it’s in the past. It’s a new team with different players, and we also have different players. It will come down to who wants it the most,” she said.
The South African coach added that the opportunity to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup should provide all the motivation her players need as they prepare for their biggest test of the tournament.
