Hosts Morocco reached the semi-finals of the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations Morocco 2026 after beating former champions South Africa 2-1 on Saturday evening.
The win also secured Morocco’s qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
Morocco started strongly and nearly took the lead in the 20th minute. Sanaa Mssoudy rose to meet a cross, but her header went just over the bar.
South Africa responded a minute later when Thembi Kgatlana had a chance, but her effort also went over.
Morocco finally broke the deadlock in the 31st minute. Sakina Ouzraoui produced a fine first-time finish to score her second goal of the tournament.
The forward reacted quickly inside the box and guided the ball past South Africa goalkeeper Kaylin Swart to give the hosts a 1-0 lead before half-time.
Morocco doubled their lead six minutes after the restart.
Hanane Aït El Haj calmly converted a penalty after South Africa were judged to have committed a foul inside the box.
South Africa needed two goals and began to push forward.
Their efforts paid off in the 67th minute when Kgatlana showed her quality. She moved in from the left before firing a powerful shot into the net to make it 2-1.
Banyana Banyana continued to attack in search of an equaliser and put the Moroccan defence under pressure.
However, Morocco stayed organised and defended well. They limited South Africa’s clear chances until the final whistle.
Morocco held on for a 2-1 victory and secured their place in the WAFCON semi-finals.
The Atlas Lionesses will play in the semi-finals on Wednesday, 12 August. They have also secured a place at the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
