WAFCON 2026 has been quietly serving the best storyline in African football all year, but most of the continent only realised it on Group C’s “group of death” night, when Malawi lost to Zambia but somehow still topped the group. X (formerly Twitter) users spent the whole night doing the maths, pulling up CAF’s tiebreaker rules like it was an exam question nobody revised for, and viewers were reminded of our deep love for football.

Here is everything you missed

Let us start at home base. The Black Queens of Ghana scraped into the quarter-finals the hard way after a very intense 1-1 draw with Mali in the group finale that had everyone’s blood pressure up. A standout player in the national team was none other than Portia Boakye, who reminded all of us why she is the backbone of the defence. Portia picked up the Woman of the Match trophy against Mali and was applauded for organising Ghana’s back line perfectly, before Ghana fell to Malawi in the quarter-finals.

Elsewhere, the tournament kept reminding everyone that African women’s football is simply unpredictable and a sight for sore eyes. Familiar faces returned. Zambia’s very own Barbra Banda just had to do what she is known for, taking the lead on the scoring chart.

We witnessed first-time finalists Cape Verde get their first-ever WAFCON goal through Eveline Pereira, and it felt wholesome watching a nation’s first tournament goal in real time. But if Group C taught us anything, it’s that the real chaos was still to come, and that’s where the Chawinga sisters walk in.

Banyana Banyana (South Africa) turned their group stage into a full soap opera. They lost their opener to Tanzania, then somehow found themselves 2-0 down to Côte d’Ivoire and staring elimination in the face, but substitutes Thembi Kgatlana and Hildah Magaia dragged them back to 2-2, equalising deep in stoppage time, and they managed to scrape second position in Group B. One of the best comebacks of the tournament. The best 15 minutes, full stop. Other notable moments included Côte d’Ivoire’s own surprise run, going unbeaten in their group after a 12-year absence. Then we had Tanzania nearly stealing a historic first-ever win with a stoppage-time penalty. By now I hope you see the pattern: this WAFCON edition simply refused to let any group finish quietly.

Then Malawi happened. Debutants ranked 153rd in the world walked into a group with ten-time champions Nigeria and beat them 3-2, to everyone’s surprise, with Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga combining for all three goals. We all thought that was peak performance from Malawi’s Scorchers, but that was just the beginning. Malawi went on to top their group, beat Ghana in the quarter-finals (earning Temwa her second Woman of the Match; chale, at this point CAF should just laminate it for her) and ride their wave all the way to their first-ever final.

Algeria’s story didn’t stop at the semis either. They lost to Malawi in the last four but came back to beat hosts Morocco 3-2 on penalties in the third-place play-off. It was Algeria’s first-ever WAFCON bronze, and a genuinely brutal way for Morocco to end a tournament they have hosted three times running without ever lifting the trophy. Beating the home team in their own stadium for a medal is not a consolation prize; that’s a statement. The Fennecs are here to stay.

Meanwhile, Cameroon were busy having the most Cameroon storyline possible. Initially, they hadn’t even qualified for the original 12-team tournament. It took CAF expanding WAFCON to 16 teams for them to sneak in, like getting into the party because the venue upgraded capacity at the last minute. Cameroon used that last lifeline to knock out Nigeria, the most decorated team in WAFCON history, 1-0 in the quarter-finals. The Super Falcons’ reputation, officially disrespected.

That’s how we ended up with two unique finalists from different spheres of the continent. It was an incredible final, as the Cameroon players came prepared. Marie Ngah Manga scored twice and Naomi Eto added one, all before the second half even started. With Malawi looking a bit out of place, we witnessed Cameroon lift the WAFCON title, only the fourth nation ever to do that.

And for the trivia lovers, here’s the tea on the individual awards. Temwa Chawinga walked away with the Golden Boot (5 goals, 2 assists) despite being on the losing side of the final, the ultimate “I lost the war, but I ate anyway” moment. Michaely Bihina scooped the Golden Glove after basically willing Cameroon into the final with a penalty-shootout performance against Morocco that is now deeply cemented in their memories. Monique Ngock took Woman of the Competition for Cameroon, because apparently one trophy wasn’t enough for that squad. And Algeria picked up the Fair Play Award for always showcasing kindness and professionalism.

Now for the honest part. As much as this tournament delivered, a few things need fixing. Too many stadiums were embarrassingly empty for a continental tournament, and that’s on marketing and scheduling, not on the players. VAR checks dragged on long enough to kill momentum and still produced calls that left everyone baffled. Coverage across the continent was patchy at best. These women earned better coverage, better officiating and just more respect.

And that’s the part that gets me. A team that didn’t even qualify on merit ended up beating ten-time champions and lifting the trophy. A debutant nation ranked 153rd in the world made it all the way to the final and still walked away with the Golden Boot. That’s not a small story; that’s the kind of thing you tell your kids about, the kind of tournament people will still be talking about years from now. And most of us nearly missed it, catching the biggest moments second-hand through a confused WhatsApp status instead of watching them unfold live. We got to witness something special this WAFCON. Let’s not sleep on the next one.