CAPE TOWN – Banyana Banyana beat long-time rivals Nigeria 2-1 at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca to qualify for the FIFA Playoff tournament for next year’s Women’s World Cup in Brazil on Thursday night.
Banyana Banyana and Nigeria were knocked out of the CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON 2026) in the quarter-final stage of the continental tournament and in the process missed out on the four automatic places to the Women’s World Cup.
The next phase of the FIFA qualification process will be played in November 2026 and will feature two teams from Africa and Asia, and one each from Oceania and South America.
This was a collective team effort from Banyana Banyana and it was Thembi Kgatlana who opened the scoring when she found the back of the net after receiving a beautiful pass from Hilda Magaia in the 56th minute.
Captain Refiloe Jane increased the lead to 2-0 when she fired a shot from the edge of the box and rattled the net in the 77th minute.
But the South African senior women’s national team finished with 10 players on the pitch after Jane was sent off for handling the ball inside the area during stoppage time.
Nigeria’s Christy Ucheibe scored the consolation from the penalty spot to make it 2-1.
The Super Falcons pushed for an equaliser but found Kaylin Swart, who walked away with the Woman of the Match Award, in an uncompromising mood.
Swart made a series of saves keep the Nigerians at bay and it was no surprise that her teammates lifted her on their shoulders after the match as they celebrated the victory. The team will return to South Africa this weekend.
Image: @Banyana_Banyana/Twitter.
