By Nadia Ntiamoah
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has overturned Edo Queens’ penalty-shootout victory over Ghana’s Ampem Darkoa Ladies in the WAFU Zone B qualifying final for the 2026 CAF Women’s Champions League after ruling that the decisive shootout should never have taken place.
The ruling, issued on September 26 by CAF’s Organising Committee for Women’s Football, follows a protest lodged by Ampem Darkoa after the two sides drew 2-2 in regulation time in the final played on September 5 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Edo Queens had initially secured a 4-1 victory on penalties after the match went directly to a shootout. However, CAF has now determined that the competition regulations required the teams to play two 15-minute periods of extra time before penalties could be used to determine the winner.
CAF attributed the failure to proceed to extra time to an administrative instruction and, importantly, ruled that neither Ampem Darkoa nor Edo Queens was responsible for the error.
As a result, CAF has upheld Ampem Darkoa’s protest and annulled the penalty-shootout outcome. However, the governing body rejected the Ghanaian club’s request for the entire final to be replayed.
Instead, CAF has ordered the historic final to resume from where it should have gone next—with the score still tied at 2-2 and the two teams required to play extra time.
The resumption will consist of two 15-minute periods. If the scores remain level after the additional 30 minutes, the winner will then be decided through a fresh penalty shootout.
CAF has also directed that, where practically and legally possible, the continuation should preserve the sporting conditions surrounding the original match. This includes considerations relating to player eligibility, disciplinary status, substitutions, venue and match officials.
The decision creates an unusual situation for both clubs, who must now prepare to complete a final that was initially considered settled after Edo Queens won the penalty shootout.
The West African Football Union Zone B will now work with CAF and the two national football associations to determine the date, kick-off time and venue for the resumption of the final.
The stakes remain extremely high because the winner will claim the WAFU Zone B qualification ticket to the 2026 CAF Women’s Champions League final tournament.
