WAFCON to be expanded to 16 teams from 12

AlliNews understands that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is set to expand the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) from 12 teams to 16 teams, starting from the next edition set to take place in Morocco in 2026.

This is the third expansion of the tournament, since expanding from eight teams to 12 in 2022, and now to 16 in 2026.

The 2026 WAFCON in Morocco will serve as Africa’s qualifying tournament for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil, meaning the qualification process would be tougher, as more teams would now compete for both the title, and a spot at the World’s biggest national team tournament.

This expansion comes after FIFA have announced dates for the 2026 Women’s African Cup of Nations - March 17th to April 3rd.

The expansion has been officially approved by the CAF Executive Committee (EXCO) meeting on Sunday, 5 October 2025, at the Fleuve Congo Hotel in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

However, the criteria for the selection of the additional four teams has not been announced as of the time of reports.

The 2026 edition will be the 16th edition of the tournament, with Nigeria’s Super Falcons winning 10, with only two other winners – Equatorial Guinea and South Africa.