Malawi book first-ever place at Women’s World Cup

Malawi achieved a historic milestone by securing the first-ever berth at the Women’s World Cup. The East African nation achieved this feat after a thrilling quarter-final victory over Ghana in the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) on Sunday. The match saw Malawi come from behind, with Temwa Chawinga equalizing in the 12th minute, followed by Rose Kadzere scoring a last-minute winner in the 79th minute.

This triumph followed Ghana’s Chantelle Boye-Hlorkah’s seventh minute goal, giving the Black Queens an early lead. Malawi joins Algeria, Cameroon, and Morocco as four African teams automatically qualifying for the 32-team World Cup in Brazil. The WAFCON quarter-final winners all advanced directly to the World Cup. The first semi-final will see Malawi face Algeria on Wednesday, followed by Morocco against Cameroon, who had earlier stunned defending champions Nigeria 1-0.

Myriam Nyadjou, just 19, had given her team a World Cup ticket with a superb long-range free kick. Nigeria's achievement of reaching the World Cup for the ninth time was ended in Rabat, marking a new era for the WAFCON winners. Equatorial Guinea and South Africa are the other African nations to have lifted the African title. The final is scheduled for the following Sunday in Rabat.