Cameroon defeated defending champions Nigeria 1-0 in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final on Sunday to book a place in the last four.
Myriam Maéva Nyadjou Wamen scored the only goal in the 19th minute with a free-kick at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium, giving the Indomitable Lionesses a lead they held until the final whistle.
Nigeria dominated possession and created more chances after the interval but were unable to break through a resolute Cameroon defence. Goalkeeper Michaely Bihina produced several key saves to deny the Super Falcons an equaliser.
The result ends Nigeria’s title defence and their unbroken record of reaching at least the semi-finals in every centralised edition of the tournament. It also means the Super Falcons miss out on automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil, which is reserved for the four WAFCON semi-finalists.
Cameroon will face hosts Morocco in the semi-finals on Wednesday after the Moroccans beat South Africa 2-1. Nigeria must now enter the play-off route among the quarter-final losers to keep their World Cup hopes alive.
The sides last met at the WAFCON in 2022, when Nigeria won 1-0 in the quarter-finals.
