Women's AFCON: Teams land in Morocco as tournament nears kick-off
Africa's top women's football nations have begun arriving in Morocco ahead of the highly anticipated TotalEnergies CAF Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), with defending champions South Africa among the first to pitch camp.
The tournament, which kicks off on 5 July and runs until 26 July 2025, will see twelve of the continent's finest sides competing across Moroccan cities in what promises to be a fiercely contested edition of the championship.
Banyana Banyana, who clinched their maiden WAFCON title in Morocco in 2022, arrived in Casablanca on Wednesday after a demanding 24-hour journey from Johannesburg, including a layover in Ghana.
Despite travel delays, the South Africans wasted no time, holding their first training session shortly after settling in.
African champions Banyana Banyana departed for Morocco this afternoon ahead of their defense of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations title next month.#LiveTheImpossible @SABC_Sport pic.twitter.com/k3ik0Wo96t — Banyana_Banyana (@Banyana_Banyana) June 24, 2025
'It was a long and tiring trip, but we have arrived and nicely settled in, and we managed to have our first training session,' said head coach Dr Desiree Ellis.
'It's very exciting to be here to finally get started. There is a big tournament coming up and we have to be ready for it.'
South Africa are drawn in Group C alongside Ghana, Mali and Tanzania.
They open their title defence against the Black Queens of Ghana on 7 July, followed by fixtures against Tanzania (11 July) and Mali (14 July), all to be staged at Honneur Stadium in Oujda.
Meanwhile, Zambia's Copper Queens are also intensifying preparations in Mohammédia.
The team, led by coach Nora Häuptle, has been holding high-intensity sessions at the Lanoria Club, with both local and foreign-based players in camp.
The Zambians face hosts Morocco in the tournament's opening match at the newly built Olympic Stadium in Rabat on 5 July.
Zambia's group stage campaign continues with encounters against Senegal and DR Congo on 9 and 12 July, respectively, both at El Bachir Stadium in Mohammédia.
Hosts Morocco remain camped in Rabat and will play a friendly against Tanzania at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday as part of their final preparations.
The Lionesses, coached by Jorge Vilda Rodriguez, are also in Group A with Zambia, Senegal, and DR Congo.
Senegal, for their part, have now departed for Morocco to begin their tournament build-up. Group B will feature continental heavyweights Nigeria, Tunisia, Algeria and Botswana.
With the teams now assembling across the host nation, anticipation continues to build for the premier women's football event on the continent.
All eyes will be on Morocco from next week, as the best of African women's football takes centre stage.
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