BY NADIA NTIAMOAH
The Black Queens will step up preparations for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) when they renew one of African football’s fiercest rivalries against Nigeria’s Super Falcons in an international friendly on Saturday, July 18.
The high-profile encounter, scheduled for the Stade El Abir Zaouli in Casablanca with kick-off at 4:00 p.m., is expected to provide the Black Queens with their toughest examination yet ahead of the continental championship.
The friendly comes just days after Ghana made an encouraging start to their pre-WAFCON campaign by defeating Ivory Coast 1-0. Sharon Sampson emerged as the match winner, scoring in the 75th minute to hand the Black Queens a confidence-boosting victory in their opening warm-up fixture.
That result has lifted morale within the camp, but the technical team believes the clash against nine-time African champions Nigeria will offer a more accurate assessment of the squad’s readiness for the tournament.
The match will also revive the long-standing rivalry between Ghana and Nigeria, two traditional powerhouses of women’s football on the continent whose meetings have consistently produced fiercely contested encounters over the years.
For the Black Queens’ technical bench, the fixture presents another opportunity to evaluate player combinations, strengthen team chemistry and fine-tune tactical systems before the start of WAFCON.
Ghana heads into the tournament with high expectations after securing a bronze medal at the previous edition of the competition and will be aiming to build on that achievement.
The Black Queens have been drawn in Group D alongside Cape Verde, Cameroon and Mali, a group expected to test their ambitions of making another deep run in the tournament.
