Nigeria’s Falconets. Photo by IMAGO
Nigeria’s Falconets will have the chance to avenge their painful defeat to Ghana as Benin Republic has officially been named the host of the 2025 WAFU B U20 Women’s Championship, scheduled to take place from November 3 to 10, Soccernet.ng reports.
The confirmation of Benin as hosts was announced by the West African Football Union (WAFU Zone B) on Tuesday.
Benin will welcome some of the region’s top women’s youth teams, including defending champions Ghana, Nigeria, Niger, and Burkina Faso.
The tournament serves as a key platform for developing women’s football across the sub-region and will be the second edition of the event.
The first edition, hosted by Ghana in 2023, was a thrilling advert for women’s football, setting the stage for a bigger spectacle in Cotonou.
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Nigeria’s Falconets out to right the wrongs of 2023
For Nigeria, the memories of the 2023 final defeat in Kumasi still sting.
The Falconets were arguably the best team throughout that maiden tournament, scoring 20 goals and conceding none until the final.
They cruised past Niger (7-0), Togo (6-0), and Burkina Faso (3-0) in the group stage, before comfortably dispatching Benin 3-0 in the semi-finals.
But in the final, they fell agonisingly short.
Ghana took the lead through a 39th-minute penalty by Stella Nyamekye, before Flourish Sabastine equalised late on. The game went to penalties, where Ghana triumphed 3-1.
Nyamekye went on to be named Player of the Tournament, while Nigeria’s Esther Ajakaye finished as top scorer with six goals. A total of 55 goals were scored in the tournament, with Nigeria contributing an astonishing 20.
Now, with the next edition on neutral soil, the Falconets will look to go one better and finally lift the trophy they so narrowly missed out on.