Nigeria will have plenty to cheer about when the continent’s best female footballers gather in Lagos next month. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) on Tuesday released its shortlists for the 2026 CAF Women’s Awards, and the Super Falcons, goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma and two of the country’s brightest young talents, Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei and Oluwakemi Adegbuyi, are all in contention.
The nominations were announced on CAF’s official social media channels on November 3. Winners will be unveiled at the awards ceremony on Monday, December 7, 2026, in Lagos, according to Blueprint and BusinessDay. BusinessDay reports the event will take place at the Wole Soyinka Centre.
Super Falcons chase back-to-back team title
The Super Falcons are one of 10 sides shortlisted for Women’s National Team of the Year. They will be up against Algeria, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Morocco and South Africa.
Nigeria are the defending holders of the award. At the 2025 edition, the Super Falcons were named Women’s National Team of the Year after winning a record-extending 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title, coming from behind to beat hosts Morocco in the final in Rabat. A second straight win, on home soil, would be a fitting reward for a team that remains the most successful in African women’s football.
Cabo Verde’s inclusion is one of the talking points of the list. Blueprint notes that the island nation is the only nominated team without a player in any of the individual categories.
Uzoma flies the flag in goal
Edo Queens goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma is Nigeria’s representative in the Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year category. Her nomination is also a boost for the domestic Nigeria Women Football League, where she plays her club football.
She faces competition from Chloe N’Gazi (Algeria), Michaely Bihina (Cameroon), Cynthia Konlan (Ghana), Mercy Sikelo (Malawi), Fatoumata Karantao (Mali), Khadija Er-Rmichi (Morocco), Adji Ndiaye (Senegal), Kaylin Swart (South Africa) and Hazel Nali (Zambia).
Nigeria has dominated this award in recent years. Brighton goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie won it at the 2025 awards for the third year in a row, and Uzoma will be hoping to keep the trophy in Nigerian hands.
Two Nigerians in Young Player race
The Young Player of the Year category features two Nigerians. Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei, who plays her club football at Benfica in Portugal and has featured for the Falconets, is joined by Oluwakemi Adegbuyi of Robo Queens.
Adegbuyi’s nomination comes during a strong run for the Flamingos, Nigeria’s under-17 women’s team, who have reached the semi-finals of the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, where they will face Brazil. BusinessDay links her nomination to her role in that campaign.
The other contenders are Romaine Gandonou (Benin), Maëva Nyadjou (Cameroon), Grace-Ruth Sery and N’Sira Ouédraogo (both Côte d’Ivoire), Rose Kadzere (Malawi), Kautar Azraf (Morocco), Adji Ndiaye (Senegal) and Winfrida Gerald (Tanzania). Ndiaye and Cameroon’s Bihina are each nominated in two categories.
No Nigerian in Player of the Year category
Nigeria has no nominee for the biggest individual prize, Women’s Player of the Year. The 10-player list is made up of Marine Dafeur (Algeria), Marie Ngah Manga, Michaely Bihina and Monique Ngock (all Cameroon), Portia Boakye (Ghana), Tabitha Chawinga and Temwa Chawinga (Malawi), Hanane Aït El Haj (Morocco), Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa) and Barbra Banda (Zambia).
Malawi’s Temwa Chawinga, who also made the top 10 of this year’s Women’s Ballon d’Or rankings according to Blueprint, is expected to be among the frontrunners, alongside Zambia’s Barbra Banda and South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana. Nigeria’s absence will be noticed, given that Asisat Oshoala won the award a record six times.
What happens next
CAF has not yet detailed how this year’s winners will be chosen, and further updates on the shortlists are expected before the ceremony. All eyes will now turn to December 7, when Lagos hosts the continent’s football family and Nigeria’s nominees bid to add to the country’s long record of CAF honours.
Before then, Nigerian fans have another reason to watch closely: the Flamingos’ World Cup semi-final against Brazil, which could boost Adegbuyi’s case even further.
Sources: Blueprint, BusinessDay, Confederation of African Football (CAF).
