What Ghana Needs to Qualify for 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup After Beating Ivory Coast
- Ghana has secured 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 cathartic 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.
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 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.
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.
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.
According to CAF Online, 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
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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Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
