Latest news with #BarbraBanda
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Barbra Banda Shines At WAFCON
Football Case Study photographer Andrea Vilchez talks about the experience of photographing Barbra Banda for the Orlando Pride and at WAFCON.
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Barbra Banda Shines At WAFCON
Football Case Study photographer Andrea Vilchez talks about the experience of photographing Barbra Banda for the Orlando Pride and at WAFCON.
BBC News
18-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Nigeria thrash Zambia to reach Wafcon semi-finals
Nigeria cruised into the semi-finals of the 2024 Women's Africa Cup of Nations with a statement 5-0 victory over Zambia in Copper Queens had been expected to pose a tough challenge for the record nine-time champions, but were blown away by a stunning performance which was underlined by clinical West Africans never looked back after centre-back Osinachi Ohale was left unmarked at a free-kick in the second minute and headed past Petronella Chanda missed a glorious chance to equalise on the half hour mark and three minutes later Nigeria doubled their lead through a fine finish from the impressive Esther Ihezuo capitalised on hesitancy in the Zambia defence to make it 3-0 to the Super Falcons on the stroke of half-time with a composed Demehin nodded in the fourth from another pinpoint free-kick delivery midway through the second half at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium, and Folashade Ijamilusi rounded off the scoring in the first minute of stoppage had beaten Nigeria to finish third at the 2022 finals, yet their formidable strike partnership of Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji – who had scored three goals apiece in the group stage – failed to register a shot on target between who are still yet to concede a goal at this year's finals, will face either defending champions South Africa or Senegal in the semi-finals on Tuesday (16:00 GMT).Those two sides meet in the last eight in Oujda on Saturday at 19:00 GMT. Nigeria capitalise on perfect start Nigeria had only found the back of the net once in their final two Group B games and coach Justin Madugu made six changes from the 0-0 draw with Algeria on Sunday, including handing Okoronkwo her first start of the striker made an instant impact as she floated in a ball from deep which Ohale met 12 yards out and guided inside the right-hand upright with Musole rooted to the spot, and Nigeria's purposeful start left their opponents on the back Copper Queens were let down by both their set-piece delivery and their crossing from open play, with Super Falcons keeper Chiamaka Nnadozie also prowling outside her area to clear any created Zambia's only opening of the first half, breezing past a defender on the left and cutting back to Chanda, who could not connect from 12 proved to be a costly miss as Okoronkwo scored a brilliant second, controlling Rasheedat Ajibade's cross on her chest before keeping her balance and firing into the bottom left-hand third goal of the tournament effectively wrapped the game up at the break, as the Pachuca frontwoman latched on to a long ball from Nnadozie which Zambia failed to clear and then side-footed past Musole.A demoralised Zambia offered little after the break and Okoronkwo was the provider again when Demehin converted her inswinging free-kick from the right flank and Ijamilusi tapped in Ajibade's cross at the back post to cap off a memorable afternoon for the Super Falcons. Zambia left stunned Nigeria's campaign in Morocco has been branded as 'Mission X', and they remain on course for their 10th continental title after navigating their first challenge on the harder side of the draw.A overwhelmingly dominant performance against the Copper Queens will serve as warning to the rest of the field that the squad are motivated to return to West Africa with the trophy they last won in state of the game allowed Madugu to withdraw some of his stars in the closing stages, and the extra day's rest before their semi-final outing could prove meanwhile, came into these finals with high hopes after featuring at the past two editions of the Olympics and the 2023 Women's World Hauptle's side came close to beating the much-fancied tournament hosts in the opening game and only finished behind the Atlas Lionesses on goal difference. Banda had spoken of the desire to emulate the fairytale triumph by the country's men at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations but Zambia had no answer to Nigeria's fast start, solid defending and incisive attacking golden generation of the Copper Queens will now have to target the 2026 Wafcon for their first piece of major silverware.
New York Times
18-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
The rapid rise of Zambia, a team led by but not reliant on Barbra Banda
The Olympic Stadium Rabat was rocking with boisterous support. Hosts Morocco had high hopes for the opening game of this year's Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON). But then Barbra Banda dazzled and stole the show in her tournament debut. It took just 58 seconds for the 25-year-old to score. Picking up the ball just inside the Moroccan half, she glided past a couple of challenges before firing a shot from just outside the area past goalkeeper Khadija Er-Rmichi. Advertisement The Orlando Pride forward went on to provide an assist for fellow NWSL star Racheal Kundananji and was named player of the match as the Copper Queens drew 2-2 with the Atlas Lionesses. It may not have been a victory, but it was a statement nevertheless. For the first time in their history, Zambia are one of the tournament favourites. After finishing second in Group A — two victories and a draw left them level on seven points with table-toppers Morocco — the Copper Queens face a difficult quarter-final against nine-time African champions Nigeria today, but thanks to their raft of attacking talent, they enter the match with confidence. There is Banda the history-maker — the first woman to score back-to-back hat-tricks at the Olympics — and her Pride team-mates Prisca Chiufya and Grace Chanda. Bay FC's Kundananji, once the world's most expensive female player, and Fridah Mukoma, currently on loan in China from Kansas City Current, make up the five NWSL players at the vanguard of a nation that has seemingly cracked the code for developing talent. Zambian football is, at its roots, a community sport, played in every corner of the country; from the capital Lusaka to the Copperbelt Province near the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Rift Valley on the country's northern fringes. 'There are so many community tournaments that are being hosted and school programmes,' Fred Kangwa, manager of Bauleni United Sports Academy and the man who first spotted Banda, tells The Athletic. 'It is because of the sense of belonging and ownership that communities feel where these girls come from.' Zambia's under-17s, a team which has included Banda and seven other current Copper Queens players, have been dominant at the youth level in Africa. They regularly win the regional Council of Southern African Football Associations (COSAFA) Cup and have recently qualified for their second successive FIFA Under-17 World Cup. However, that success has rarely translated to anything significant at senior level. Advertisement In 2014's WAFCON, Zambia lost every game. After failing to qualify in 2016, they have featured in every edition since. They failed to get out of their group in 2018, but at the next tournament in 2022 they broke through, losing to eventual winners South Africa in the semi-finals. Zambia could not follow up on that progress in last year's Olympics, finishing bottom and without a point in a heavyweight group that included the U.S., Germany and Australia. Change has been bubbling the last decade, in large part thanks to stars like Banda and Kundananji playing abroad in the NWSL. Much of the credit also lies with the strength of the country's domestic football. In 2022, Zambia's 22-player squad was made up of 18 domestically based players. In the mid-2010s, the Zambian Football Federation (FAZ) began incorporating previously unconnected regional leagues into a single football pyramid. Perhaps more impactfully, they also established regular youth-level tournaments for academies and schools to participate in for both boys and girls. Those youth teams feed into provincial youth teams that play in national tournaments, which are monitored by the federation. From an early age, most players are on the radar of the national team — Banda was selected for the Under-17 national side at just 13. The federation has also been proactive at providing international opportunities for those youth players, regularly participating in the COSAFA Cup. While the vast majority of Zambian clubs are community rooted, the top table of Zambian football has always been different. The majority of teams in the top flight are state-run, with various national institutions sponsoring their own teams: the army and air force, as well as sponsorship from state-owned industries and mining companies. This often means that men's clubs struggle to keep up financially with their continental rivals, and those in Europe and North America, who are often owned by wealthy investors. But in the women's game, where private financial investment is virtually non-existent, the modest but consistent salaries that players and staff can be paid are transformative. With a greater amount of national interest in the last few years, almost all of the clubs backed by the state have turned professional. Advertisement 'It's one of the things that attracted other players to come,' Carol Kanyemba, head coach of Green Buffaloes, as well as the Zambian U-17s, tells The Athletic. '(They think) maybe I can be employed in the army, or I can get a salary at the end of the day. I can help my family using this money.' Players at Green Buffaloes are given a salary from the army but are assigned to play football as their job in the military. They are even given ranks. Banda, who played for the Buffaloes for two years, was recently promoted to Warrant Officer Class Two. Clubs like Green Buffaloes and the Red Arrows of the air force also guarantee jobs for players after their footballing career ends, providing a level of stability that is rarely found in football. It's that community support combined with superstar players that help bring about lasting change. That is, players like Banda. The African Player of the Year's career has taken her from the Green Buffaloes — bar a six-month sojourn into boxing where she won all five of her professional bouts — to Dux Logrono in northern Spain and Shanghai Shengli in the Chinese Women's Super League, where she scored 18 goals from 13 games in her first season, before moving to the NWSL. 'She went to boxing because she felt football was not given the necessary attention that it was given for girls,' says Kangwa. 'She thought boxing would be a faster route for her to get employed as a soldier in the Zambia army.' In the U.S. Banda has continued to shine. Last year she was named the league's MVP after scoring 17 goals as the Pride secured a first league title. At last year's Games, she again proved her worth on the world stage, scoring a first-half hat-trick against Australia. No African has scored as many as her 10 goals across two Olympics. And yet, this is her first WAFCON. Banda, who is a cisgender woman, missed the 2018 and 2022 tournaments due to gender eligibility concerns raised by the federation. This was reportedly linked to naturally high testosterone levels that CAF claimed were higher than the federation's limit; however, she has never been found to have broken any rules set by FIFA, CAF or the NWSL. Advertisement With their best player denied a place on one of the sport's biggest stages, Kundananji stepped up in 2018 but also faced exclusion in 2022. Zambia's players found a way forward. Banda scored two hat-tricks at the 2020 Olympics (held in 2021). The professional leagues started to take shape shortly after and a national team with 18 players playing professionally domestically reached WAFCON's semi-finals in 2022. Of course, there are still struggles, like the bottom-of-the-group finish in last year's Olympics, but in the space of seven years, Zambia's overall rise has been swift. And now, they face Nigeria on equal footing with one of Africa's historical heavyweights with a place in the last four at stake.
BBC News
18-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Zambia vs Nigeria Wafcon quarter-finals match preview
Nigeria Super Falcons and Zambia go face each oda for di quarter-finals stage as di ongoing Women Africa Cup of nations continue to heat up. Di Larbi Zaouli stadium, Casablanca go come alive again for dis epic tie wey pipo don describe as final bifor di final. Nine time winners Nigeria get evritin to play for as dem dey hope to continue dia campaign for dia 10th title wey dem call 'Mission X'. Zambia too no wan gree as dem wan fight to win dia first eva Women's title for di continent. According to football pundits, di match go tie wrapper as current Women Africa Best Player, Barbra Banda go face off wit di record six -time African Women Footballer award winner, Asisat Oshoala. For dis ogbonge match, who go get di semi-final ticket, which team go raise dia head high, who go get di bragging rights, which attacking force sharp pass and which team defence dey easy to break? Afta 90 minutes, e go clear for evribodi eyes sake of say, di two teams no lose any match for group stage. Dia attack and defence dey compact too and beta players full di midfield. Nigeria and Zambia fans dey ready to watch entertaining football wit a touch of tension on Friday. Team news Some players go miss from di two teams sake of injury and some go return for dis match. Zambia, Xiomara Mapepa go miss di match sake of fitness wahala due to a fitness wahala but dia midfielder Grace Chanda go comeback as she don serve her suspension finish. Nigeria go also miss forward Chioma Okafor, who no go play due to hand injury wey she get during training, but Deborah Abiodun don return afta her one-match suspension. Wetin di coaches tok Nigeria top Group B wit seven points and dem start wit wit 3-0 win ova Tunisia Ihezuo late winner against Botswana and di goalless draw wit Algeria Di Super Falcons neva concede any goal for dis competition. E show say dia defence tight and dem get beta structure. "Our preparations dey good. "We dey try as much as possible to make sure say di girls dey ready," Madugu tok. "Preparations dey okay." "We dey try to improve our goal conversion. Dis tins dey take time; no be magic. But I trust di girls go make impact." Zambia, play well too for Group A, dem finish second sake of goal difference wit Morocco. The Copper Queens play 2-2 draw against di Atlas Lionesses, dem comeback to beat Senegal 3-2 na 1-0 win dem use qualify against DR Congo. "My team dey ready for di next stage. We move down to Casablanca yesterday [Wednesday] and wey dey excited and prepared for di game." "Our transition na one of di best for di world," Hauptle tok, "defenders struggle wen we challenge dem wit speed." She add say dem believe in team unity and mentality: "We no dey look too much on di opponent but focus on our strengths. We believe in unity and love, na wetin drive us." "We no go allow Nigeria to keep di initiative. On Friday, we go show dem wetin we fit do."
