Ghana’s Black Queens suffered their first defeat at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after losing 1-0 to Cameroon in their second Group D match on Sunday.
The game was decided by a first-half penalty scored by Marie Gisele Ngah Manga at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca.
The penalty was awarded after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review ruled that Benedicte Simon had handled the ball inside the penalty area.
Manga calmly converted the spot kick, sending Ghana goalkeeper Cynthia Konlan the wrong way to give Cameroon the lead.
Ghana nearly equalised before half-time when Doris Boaduwaa got a good chance inside the box, but her close-range shot was saved by the Cameroon goalkeeper.
Cameroon controlled much of the first half, while the Black Queens finished strongly but could not find the equaliser before the break.
After the restart, head coach Kim Lars Björkegren brought on Evelyn Badu to strengthen Ghana’s attack.
The substitutions gave the Black Queens more energy, with Portia Boakye and Evelyn Badu causing problems for the Cameroon defence.
Badu thought she had equalised after scoring, but the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside in the build-up.
The Black Queens kept pushing for a goal, but Cameroon defended well and held on for all three points.
The defeat means Ghana must beat Mali in their final Group D match on August 6 at 20:00 GMT to qualify for the knockout stage of the tournament.
