Nigeria’s reign as African champions ended in unprecedented fashion on Sunday as Cameroon defeated the Super Falcons 1-0 in the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final, ending Nigeria’s remarkable run of reaching at least the semi-finals at every previous WAFCON edition.
Myriam Maéva Nyadjou Wamen’s stunning 19th-minute free-kick proved decisive at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium, while goalkeeper Michaely Bihina produced a commanding performance as Cameroon resisted sustained Nigerian pressure to secure a place in the last four.
The defeat is a major historical setback for Nigeria. FIFA records Nigeria as the competition’s record 10-time champions, while CAF’s historical records show that the Super Falcons had never previously failed to reach the WAFCON semi-finals.
It also ends Nigeria’s defence of the title they won in dramatic fashion in Morocco in 2025 and leaves the continent’s most successful women’s national team facing a World Cup qualification route it has never previously needed to navigate.
Cameroon struck against the run of play in the 19th minute when Nyadjou stepped up for a long-range free-kick and sent a powerful effort beyond Chiamaka Nnadozie.
Nigeria responded by increasing the pressure, with Rasheedat Ajibade and other attacking players creating opportunities, but Cameroon repeatedly survived the pressure. Bihina emerged as one of the decisive figures of the contest, making a series of important interventions to preserve her side’s advantage
The Super Falcons continued to push after the interval, but Cameroon defended their lead with discipline and resilience. Nigeria could not find the equaliser before the final whistle.
The result sends Cameroon into the semi-finals and, with it, directly into the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. FIFA’s qualification regulations stipulate that all four WAFCON semi-finalists qualify automatically for the World Cup.
For Nigeria, however, the defeat marks a dramatic departure from its established continental dominance.
The Super Falcons had entered the 2026 tournament as defending champions and record 10-time winners. FIFA also lists Nigeria as the only African nation to have appeared at all nine previous Women’s World Cups, from 1991 through 2023.
That extraordinary consistency has now been broken at continental level.
Nigeria’s quarter-final exit means the 2026 tournament is the earliest point at which the Super Falcons have ever been eliminated from a WAFCON, according to CAF’s historical tournament data.
The defeat does not, however, end Nigeria’s hopes of reaching Brazil 2027. Instead, the Super Falcons must now use the WAFCON’s additional qualification route, beginning with a play-off against another quarter-final loser on Thursday.
The immediate challenge is therefore no longer defending the African title. It is preserving Nigeria’s extraordinary record of never missing a Women’s World Cup.