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Super Falcons Miss Out on 2026 CAF Women’s Player of the Year Shortlist

The shortlist, announced on Tuesday through CAF’s official X account, features players from across the continent in three major individual categories: Women’s Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year.

BABabatunde AbdulRaheem Lawal

For the first time in several years, no Super Falcons player has been nominated for the CAF Women’s Player of the Year award after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) released its 2026 nominees.

The shortlist, announced on Tuesday through CAF’s official X account, features players from across the continent in three major individual categories: Women’s Player of the Year, Young Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year.

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Despite their absence from the individual categories, Nigeria will still have representation at the awards, with the Super Falcons nominated for the Women’s National Team of the Year award.

The omission comes after a challenging year for the Nigerian women’s national team, who suffered a quarter-final exit at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco. The team also failed to secure qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

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Nigeria has enjoyed considerable success in the history of the CAF Women’s Player of the Year award. Asisat Oshoala has won the honour six times, while Perpetua Nkwocha claimed it four times. Cynthia Uwak and Mercy Akide have two and one awards respectively.

Akide also won the inaugural award in 1999, bringing Nigeria's total number of victories in the category to 14.

Among the leading contenders for the 2026 edition is Malawi’s Temwa Chawinga, who featured in the top 10 of the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or rankings and emerged as the leading scorer at the most recent WAFCON. Her sister, Tabitha Chawinga, also secured a nomination.

Other nominees include South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana, Zambia’s Barbra Banda, Cameroon’s Monique Ngock, Marine Dafeur of Algeria, Marie Ngah Manga of Cameroon, Ghana’s Portia Boakye and Morocco’s Hanane Aït El Haj.

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Cameroon goalkeeper Michaely Bihina also received nominations in both the Women’s Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year categories.

Another major setback for Nigeria is the omission of Chiamaka Nnadozie from the Goalkeeper of the Year shortlist. The three-time winner has enjoyed an impressive season with Brighton Women and reportedly topped the Women’s Super League save statistics.

However, Nigeria will be represented in the category by Edo Queens goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma, who will compete against Bihina and other nominated goalkeepers.

In the Young Player of the Year category, Benfica and Falconets forward Janet Akekoromowei earned a nomination alongside Robo Queens and Flamingos forward Oluwakemi Adegbuyi.

Meanwhile, the Super Falcons will face competition from Algeria, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Morocco and South Africa for the Women’s National Team of the Year award.

The 2026 CAF Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place in Lagos on December 7, with additional award categories expected to be announced in the coming days.

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