What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast

What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast

  • Ghana has secure one of Africa's two inter-confederation play-off spots for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup
  • Princess Marfo's equaliser and a Josephine Bonsu penalty completed a stunning Black Queens comeback against Côte d'Ivoire
  • Ghana's path to Brazil still requires navigating multiple knockout rounds following an earlier loss to Malawi

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Ghana's Black Queens are four wins away from qualifying for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup after beating Côte d'Ivoire 2-1 in a dramatic play-off clash in Casablanca.

Côte d'Ivoire took the lead through Ines Konan after Princess Marfo was involved in the build-up.

What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast
What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast. Photo credit: @GhanaWNT/X.
Source: Twitter

Marfo quickly made amends, scoring Ghana's equaliser before Josephine Bonsu converted from the penalty spot to complete the comeback.

The victory secured Ghana one of Africa's two places in the inter-confederation play-offs, but the hard work is far from over.

How Ghana can qualify for the 2027 Women's World Cup

Ghana will be part of a 10-team inter-confederation play-off tournament involving nations from Africa, Asia, Concacaf, South America and Oceania, plus one European representative.

Read also

Ghana vs Ivory Coast: Confirmed Black Queens lineup for 2027 Women's World Cup qualifier

Six teams will compete in the opening phase, with the winners advancing to join four seeded nations in the final stage in February 2027.

The six remaining teams will then be divided into three knockout paths. The winner of each path will qualify for the World Cup in Brazil.

For Ghana, that means four consecutive victories are required to secure qualification.

The Black Queens must first win their opening play-off match before overcoming two more opponents in the final phase.

What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast
What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast. Photo credit: @GhanaWNT/X.
Source: Twitter

Black Queens face tough road to Brazil

Ghana's route became more difficult after their 2-1 quarter-final defeat to Malawi at the 2026 WAFCON.

Instead of securing one of Africa's direct World Cup places through a semi-final appearance, the Black Queens were forced into the play-off route.

Their comeback against Côte d'Ivoire showed plenty of character, but the team will need greater defensive discipline against stronger opposition.

Giving opponents early leads could prove costly in a knockout tournament where one poor spell can end a campaign.

ChatGPT’s WAFCON final prediction falls apart

Read also

Ivory Coast vs Ghana: How to watch, kickoff time, and team news

Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that ChatGPT had predicted Nigeria, Morocco, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to make the 2026 WAFCON final.

However, only Morocco reached the last four before Cameroon eliminated them on penalties in the semi-final.

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Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe avatar

Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe (Sports Editor) Godwin Nii Armah Tagoe is a CAF-accredited journalist with over five years of experience in digital journalism. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Integrated Rural Arts and Industry (2016). Godwin's career includes covering the 2023 AFCON and grassroots competitions within Ghana. He has also served as a Presenter at VNTV, a Sports Analyst at Obonu FM, and a Football Writer for a myriad of sports websites. He joined Yen.com.gh in 2024 to cover sports. Email: godwin.tagoe@yen.com.gh.