Women’s AFCON: Cameroon begins campaign with Mali clash today.

The match will be played shortly after Cameroon’s two other Group D opponents, Ghana and debutants, Cabo Verde, clash in the first match of the pool’s actions in the 16-team tournament.

It is Cameroon’s first match in the Women’s AFCON since the selection defeated Botswana 1nil on July 17, 2022, in the classification phase of the 2022 edition.  

The Indomitable Lionesses will hope to outsmart Mali in today’s clash in a bid to start their campaign in the finest fashion.

The coordinator of the team, Dimitri Lipoff, told a pre-match press conference yesterday that the team will go all out to get a positive result.

Lipoff said the coaching team has studied the strength and weaknesses of Mali and will put in place a game plan that effectively blocks the physicality and defensive solidity game plan of the West Africans. 

“Whether they are better prepared than us is not our concern. I know that we are very well-prepared despite the limited time we had. Within the time frame we were given, we couldn’t have done much better. We are ready to respond to whatever challenge they present,” Lipoff added.

Admits Mali could be better than Cameroon 

The former Napoli SC women trainer, however, admitted that Mali could be having a much better team when compared to Cameroon. 

“I don’t consider us the favorites, even against Mali. They have a squad with only about three domestic league players, while the rest play abroad,” the team coordinator said at the presser, where he was accompanied by veteran striker, Gabrielle Aboudi Onguene. 

“Unlike us, they have been preparing together for several months under the same coach with the same core group. They are very well-prepared and had more time on their side,” he added. 

Guided by challenging experience faced during qualifiers

Cameroon originally failed to secure a place in the 2026 tournament. But a decision by the Confederation of African Football, CAF, to expand the event to a 16-team competition saw the three-time vice African champions sneaking their way through in the last minute. 

The nightmarish experience came months after the team surprisingly missed on the 2024 edition of the competition after failing to qualify. 

Lipoff and veteran forward, Aboudi Onguene, told reporters at the presser that the team will source motivation for the Mali match and the rest of the tournament from the challenges that the side faced in bids to reach the final phase of the competition.

“We are proud to be here. We know where we come from. We know what happened for us to attend this very great celebration of women’s football,” 37-year-old Aboudi Onguene stated. 

“We are not the favorites. We came in through the back door and we are well aware of that. On the other hand, we have worked in a very targeted manner, working to project the best image of Cameroonian football... We represent one of the finest footballing nations in Africa, and we are aware of that,” Lipoff said. 

“I think the competition is an event everyone wants to be a part of. It is a genuine pleasure to compete alongside the best teams in Africa,” the team coordinator added. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3862 of Wednesday July 29, 2026