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Rabat – Confederation of African Football President Patrice Motsepe arrived in Rabat on Sunday ahead of the opening of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Motsepe was welcomed upon his arrival by Royal Moroccan Football Federation General Secretary Tarik Najem. CAF’s acting general secretary, Samson Adamu, accompanied the South African football official.
The visit comes as Morocco prepares to stage Africa’s leading women’s national-team competition from July 26 to August 16.
The 2026 edition is the first to feature 16 teams, an increase from the 12 that participated in the previous tournament. The teams have been divided into four groups, with the top two from each section advancing to the quarter-finals.
Algeria and Senegal will contest the tournament’s first match at Rabat’s Olympic Stadium at 6 p.m. local time.
Hosts Morocco will then face Kenya at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat at 9 p.m., beginning their latest attempt to win the continental title for the first time.
Morocco target first continental title
The Atlas Lionesses lead Group A, which also includes Algeria, Senegal and Kenya. Morocco will enter the competition with growing expectations after finishing as runners-up in the previous two editions.
Morocco lost the 2022 final to South Africa before suffering a 3-2 defeat against Nigeria in the 2024 title match. The team will now seek to use home support to overcome the final obstacle and secure its first Women’s AFCON trophy.
Kenya, meanwhile, are returning to the continental finals after a 10-year absence. Their only previous appearance came in 2016, when they were eliminated during the group stage.
The expanded tournament will also form part of Africa’s qualification process for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. The four semi-finalists will qualify directly, while the losing quarter-finalists will compete for two places in the inter-confederation play-offs.
