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Algeria, Ghana and Malawi advance in African women Olympic qualifying

Algeria, Ghana and Malawi have advanced through the second round of Africa's qualifying competition for the Los Angeles 2028 women's Olympic football tournament. FIFA reviewed the ties after the round concluded on 13 October and set out the next pairings. Progress means a place in round three, with the continent's two Olympic berths still several rounds away.

KBVN+ desk·15 October 2026·2 min read

Temwa Chawinga at the Women's Africa Cup of Nations in Rabat on August 1, 2026; an archive image. Photo: Weam Mostafa/BackpagePix.

Clear aggregate victories

Algeria defeated the Central African Republic 15-0 overall, winning the legs 8-0 and 7-0, with Lynda Bendris contributing three goals across the tie. Malawi overcame Zimbabwe 9-0 through 2-0 and 7-0 victories; Temwa Chawinga scored in the first leg and added a hat-trick in Harare. Ghana beat Mauritius 10-0 on aggregate. South Africa and Nigeria also progressed, while Morocco and Cameroon advanced following their opponents' withdrawals. These are qualifying results, not matches at the Olympic finals.

More rounds before Los Angeles

Round three is scheduled for 23 February–6 March 2027. Algeria face Burkina Faso, Malawi meet Kenya and Ghana play Zambia. Other ties include Morocco–Nigeria, Cameroon–Côte d'Ivoire and Angola–South Africa. Each is decided over two legs. Five African qualifying rounds will produce two Olympic representatives, with round four planned for October 2027 and the final round for November–December. The emphatic second-round scores therefore settle only one stage of the journey. The accompanying Chawinga photograph is an archive image from Rabat on 1 August 2026, rather than a scene from the newly completed qualifiers.

Sources & further reading

Open the original reporting and reference material.

1. FIFAfifa.com

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