The Confederation of African Football, CAF Tuesday announced 10 nominees for the 2026 Women’s Player of the Year Award without a Nigerian player.
This is the first time since the award was introduced in 2001, with no Nigerian Super Falcons’ player listed for the top prize.
It is a significant departure from Nigeria’s historical influence on the category. Nigerian players have won the award 13 times across its 18 editions, with Asisat Oshoala accounting for six titles.
Former Super Falcons striker Perpetua Nkwocha won it four times, while Cynthia Uwak claimed the honour twice and former Nigeria captain Mercy Akide once.
The absence of a Nigerian nominee therefore represents more than a missed opportunity for an individual player. It interrupts a long standing connection between the country’s women’s football and one of African football’s most prestigious individual awards.
The 10 nominees for the 2026 Women’s Player of the Year award come from seven African countries.
Algeria’s Marine Dafeur is joined by Cameroon’s Marie Ngah Manga, Michaely Bihina and Monique Ngock, while Ghana’s Portia Boakye also makes the list.
Malawi has two representatives in sisters Tabitha Chawinga and Temwa Chawinga. Morocco’s Hanane Aït El Haj, South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana and Zambia’s Barbra Banda complete the shortlist.
The list includes established international names and players who have made significant contributions to their respective national teams and clubs.
For Nigeria, however, the absence is particularly noticeable given the country’s record in the award and the reputation built by its leading women’s footballers over the years.
However, despite the disappointment of top players missing out this year, the country’s next generation of women’s football talent received continental recognition, with two young forwards earning places among the nominees for the 2026 Confederation of African Football (CAF) Awards.
The nominations offer another indication of the talent emerging through the country’s women’s football system, with players making their mark at both club and international level.
Yesterday’sannouncement also carried a more difficult development for Nigerian football, one that places the achievements of its younger players against an unprecedented absence from one of the ceremony’s biggest individual honours.
Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei and Oluwakemi Adegbuyi have both been nominated for the Women’s Young Player of the Year award, giving Nigeria two representatives in a category that recognises emerging talents across the continent.
Akekoromowei, who recently joined Portuguese side Benfica, has continued to attract attention following her performances for Nigeria’s Falconets.
The forward represented the country at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland, where the Falconets reached the quarter-finals. Her progress has now earned her a place among Africa’s 10 shortlisted young players.
Adegbuyi, meanwhile, has enjoyed a productive year with Robo Queens and the Flamingos, establishing herself as one of the promising attacking talents in Nigerian women’s football.
Her performances have brought individual recognition, including three Most Valuable Player awards across the NWFL Premiership, WAFU-B Women’s Champions League and WAFU-B U-17 Women’s Tournament.
She has also continued to contribute to the Flamingos’ campaign at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, where Nigeria reached the semi finals.
The two Nigerians will compete against Romaine Gandonou of Benin, Maëva Nyadjou of Cameroon, Grace-Ruth Sery and N’Sira Ouédraogo of Côte d’Ivoire, Rose Kadzere of Malawi, Kautar Azraf of Morocco, Adji Ndiaye of Senegal and Winfrida Gerald of Tanzania.
Their nominations give Nigeria two opportunities to claim the young-player prize and provide recognition for the country’s development pathway, from the domestic league to the national youth teams and European football.
While Akekoromowei and Adegbuyi have secured places among the continent’s emerging talents, the senior Women’s Player of the Year shortlist has produced a strikingly different outcome.
Although the senior individual category has brought disappointment, Nigeria is not without representation across the women’s nominations.
Beyond the two young-player candidates, Edo Queens goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma has been shortlisted for the Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award, while the Super Falcons are nominated for Women’s National Team of the Year.
Uzoma’s inclusion is especially notable following the omission of three-time winner Chiamaka Nnadozie, while the Super Falcons will compete against nine other national teams for the team award.
The four Nigerian entries across the goalkeeper, young-player and national-team categories provide a broader picture of the country’s representation at this year’s ceremony.
Super Falcons
The 2026 CAF Awards will take place in Lagos on December 7, when the winners across the various categories will be announced.
