Banyana Banyana head coach Dr Desiree Ellis has reacted to CAF’s revised fixture for this year’s Women’s Africa Cup of Nations saying the governing body has done well to consider the players’ welfare.
According to a statement by the South African Football Association, CAF have revised the fixture with the opening day now moved from 25 July to 26 July 2026.
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Banyana are in Group B with Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Tanzania at the tournament that’s also a 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier.
They will open their 2026 account on day two of the tournament and not on the opening day as per was in the initial fixture. Banyana’s first game is against Tanzania on July 27 at 19:00 South African time, then they face Ivory Coast four days later in another 19:00 kickoff and finish the pool stage against the Burkinabe on August 4. The team will play all their group matches at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca.
Meanwhile, Dr Ellis said she appreciates the extended days in between matches saying it’s a good move also considering the weather conditions in Morocco.
“The new fixture gives us three days of rest in-between matches instead of the previous one where we only had two days to recover,” said Ellis on Safa.com.
“This move is a clear indication that the welfare of players has been taken into consideration, more so because of the hot conditions expected during the tournament period. We applaud CAF for that move and say thank you as this will help most teams.
“What is also exciting is that now we have the confirmed fixtures, and we are able to plan thoroughly for the competition, and we will now go full blast with our plans.
“This is a very important tournament, and the mission remains the same for us, we want to qualify for the World Cup in Brazil next year. Now that we have all the information regarding the 2026 WAFCON, we will announce our plans soon, and this includes naming the final squad for the tournament.”
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