2028 Olympic Qualifiers (Women): Senegal wins in Rades, Mali falls in Benin, seven matches on October 9

The second round of the African qualifiers for the women's Olympic football tournament, which will lead to the Los Angeles 2028 Games, saw its first six first-leg matches take place on October 8, 2026. Seven other matches are scheduled for this Friday, October 9, 2026, from Lubumbashi to Antananarivo, according to schedules published by Africa Radio and Afrik-Foot.

Casset frees the Lionesses in Rades

The most closely contested match of the evening took place at the Rades Stadium in Tunisia, where Senegal secured a 1-0 victory thanks to a goal by Ndeye Awa Casset in the 63rd minute, reports Afrik-Foot. It is a slim but precious advantage ahead of the return leg, scheduled for October 13, 2026.

The surprise came from Cotonou. Benin defeated Mali 3-1, thanks to a first-half brace from Romaine Gandonou and a goal from Milhad Sadikou in the 47th minute; the Malians reduced the deficit seven minutes later. Burkina Faso won 3-1 against Equatorial Guinea in Ouagadougou, and Uganda dominated Zambia 2-1 in Kampala.

Ghana did not falter in Mauritius, winning 3-0 with goals from Abigail Kim, Alice Kusi, and Benedicta Simon, all scored in the first half. The biggest win went to Kenya, who crushed the Seychelles 11-0. Morocco has already qualified for the third round without playing.

The schedule for October 9, 2026

Seven first-leg matches complete the schedule this Friday (French times): Malawi vs. Zimbabwe at 3:00 PM, DR Congo vs. Ivory Coast at 3:30 PM, Angola vs. Namibia at 5:00 PM, Madagascar vs. South Africa at 6:00 PM, Botswana vs. Tanzania, Central African Republic vs. Algeria, and Comoros vs. Nigeria at 7:00 PM.

The most high-profile match will be played at the TP Mazembe Stadium in Lubumbashi, where the DR Congo Leopards host Ivory Coast at 1:30 PM GMT, Afrik-Foot specifies; the return leg will take place on October 13, 2026, at the Felix Houphouet-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan. In Antananarivo, the Barea Ladies of Madagascar face the Banyana Banyana of South Africa, the reigning African champions.

Two matches to keep the dream alive

The return legs are set for October 12 and 13, 2026. The winners of these two-legged ties will advance to the third round, the final hurdle before the Olympic tournament.

These matches are often played far from the spotlight, in front of sparse crowds and with resources incomparable to those of men's football. They are nonetheless Africa's path to Los Angeles and a laboratory for a generation of players—Beninese, Congolese, Kenyan, South African—who are now fueling European and North American leagues. Benin, which just took down Mali, is the best illustration of this.