In 35 years of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, only four countries have ever lifted the trophy. Cameroon became the newest member of that club on Sunday, defeating Malawi 3-0 in Rabat, Morocco, to finally claim a title that had eluded them across three previous final appearances.
The victory was emphatic. Marie Ngah Manga scored twice and Naomi Eto added a third, all inside the first half, sealing the win long before the final whistle. For a country that had finished runner-up three times without breaking through, the manner of the win mattered almost as much as the result itself.
Cameroon’s arrival brings the list of champions to four, and the gap between the top of that list and the bottom says a lot about how the tournament has evolved since 1991. Nigeria sits alone at the summit with 10 titles, a run that began in 1998 and has continued in bursts ever since, including a stunning 3-2 comeback win over hosts Morocco in the 2025 final after trailing by two goals. No other nation has come close to matching that consistency.
Equatorial Guinea broke Nigeria’s early monopoly in 2008, winning on home soil before adding a second title in 2012 with a 4-0 rout of South Africa in the final, a tournament in which they’d also eliminated Cameroon in the semis. That remains their high-water mark, and no third title has followed.
South Africa’s breakthrough took longer. Banyana Banyana lost five finals before finally winning in 2022, beating hosts Morocco 2-1 in Rabat, the same city where Cameroon would celebrate their own first title four years later.
That history is what makes Cameroon’s win resonate. Three runner-up finishes, a decade-long wait since their last final appearance in 2016, and finally a commanding performance that left no room for doubt. It also means the leaderboard now reads: Nigeria with 10, Equatorial Guinea with 2, and South Africa and Cameroon with 1 each.
Despite the rapid growth of women’s football investment across the continent in recent years, the ceiling for breaking into this club has remained remarkably high. Four winners in 35 years is a narrow list, and Cameroon’s win is only the second time since 2012 that a new name has been added to it.
